California Attorney General Moves to Intervene in Cassirer Case to Defend AB 2867

The move puts the state in position to uphold its looted‑art law as the district court weighs the Spanish museum’s constitutional and foreign‑policy objections.

Overview

Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a motion on November 17 to intervene in Cassirer v. Thyssen‑Bornemisza and defend California’s AB 2867.
AB 2867, signed in September 2024, expands victims’ rights in stolen‑art cases by directing courts to apply California law to eligible claims.
The U.S. Supreme Court vacated a Ninth Circuit ruling and sent the case back to consider AB 2867, and the matter now proceeds in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
The Thyssen‑Bornemisza Collection Foundation argues the law is unconstitutional and interferes with federal foreign‑relations interests, while the Cassirer family and state officials say California law requires return of stolen art.
The dispute centers on Pissarro’s 1897 “Rue Saint‑Honoré in the Afternoon. Effect of Rain,” acknowledged as Nazi‑looted in 1939, now held by Spain’s museum and valued in the tens of millions.