2nd Circuit Upholds NYC Graffiti Landmark as Protected Art - FindLaw

2nd Circuit Upholds NYC Graffiti Landmark as Protected Art - FindLaw.

2nd Circuit Upholds NYC Graffiti Landmark as Protected Art

By Joseph Fawbush, Esq. on February 21, 2020 3:10 PM

Graffiti from New York City artist Jonathan Cohen and others were protected works under federal law, the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals has held. In a unanimous decision, the federal appellate court awarded Cohen and others $6.75 million in damages after the building owner whitewashed the walls of his Queens, New York, warehouse in preparation for their renovation into luxury apartments. The court found the building owner willfully destroyed the graffiti without giving a chance for the artists to recover or commemorate their work.