Art Law in big firms

[tvw74]

Is anyone or does anyone know an art lawyer in a very large firm. does this job even exist at that scale. if it does, is it a very competitive position like some are in corporate law in large firms.

[Thane Messinger]

Is anyone or does anyone know an art lawyer in a very large firm. does this job even exist at that scale. if it does, is it a very competitive position like some are in corporate law in large firms.

The answer is that it is rare, and it is highly specialized (and not often a sole expertise).  The exceptions are more likely to be found in government positions: still highly limited, but, with the right credentials, there are offices dealing with these issues (which revolve more around ownership, usually, than art per se).  I posted an example in your other thread; it might seem a bit silly or extreme, but that's actually one of the hot areas in art law.

Have you a background in art?

Thane.

[tvw74]

yea but more in studio art than art history, though ive taken a lot of art history classes. Im an studio art undergrad with a lot of questions about the legal profession ha

[Thane Messinger]

yea but more in studio art than art history, though ive taken a lot of art history classes. Im an studio art undergrad with a lot of questions about the legal profession ha

These can be fine combinations, believe it or not.  (The #1 student in our section was an art history major.)

As a rule, however, the real question is the degree to which you wish to pursue the art or the law.  There would be few opportunities to combine them, but they are there.  Moreover, if convincingly done this can actually be one of those soft plusses that makes the difference in a reach school.  To position yourself, however, it's likely that you would need a master's or even PhD in art, and some serious work in the field to connect with the interest in law.

On the plus side, if those are real interests, you could pursue not just the legal side but also, quite likely, the art side (such as as a curator or director of a museum, etc).  If this is of interest you might also consider an MBA with a specialization in non-profit organizations (there are a few programs that offer this specialty).

[CJScalia]

Nothing to argue with what Thane says here, but if you're particularly interested in working with Art Law, smaller sized firms is probably a better place to look. Not to mention, you're less likely to hate your life working there.

[nealric]

I'm sure it exists to some degree, but it's not the kind of thing you can just decide to do ex ante. Even at the largest firm, it's unlikely that there would be more than 1-2 attorneys practicing in such a small niche. It's pretty unlikely that even those attorneys would exclusively work in the art world.

Even if you did get hired by a firm that worked in the art world, getting placed in that department would require considerable luck (i.e. that they have an opening). An opening might only come up every 3-4 years.

Also, art law could mean quite a few things. A lot of work could actually be tax (exempt orgs). Or it could be litigation. Or it could be in-house type work (for an auctioneer). In any case, few of these practices would necessarily require extensive art history knowledge (although it might build rapport with clients).