Heirs to German Jews Sue UBS To Recover Art Collection Stolen by Nazis

Image by Getty Images

By JTA October 20, 2014

The relatives of German Jews whose art collection was seized by the Nazis have sued UBS, claiming the Swiss bank cheated them out of their inheritance.

The family of Ludwig and Margret Kainer — the children of their cousins — filed lawsuits in New York and Switzerland contending that the bank never made an effort to find them.

According to the lawsuit, UBS created a fake foundation in which to place the proceeds of the sales of artworks once owned by the couple, The New York Times reported.

When Christie’s auctioned off the Degas work “Danseuses” for nearly $11 million in 2009, the auction catalog reported that it was part of a restitution agreement with the heirs of Ludwig and Margret Kainer, according to the newspaper.

The lawsuit contends that the foundation, which ostensibly supports the health and education of Jewish youth, has collected proceeds from other sales and restitutions, the Times reported.

UBS and the foundation, which was named after Norbert Levy, Margret Kainer’s father, said in court filings that they have done nothing wrong but declined to comment to the newspaper.

The foundation, containing millions of dollars in recovered assets, was set up originally in 1928 to benefit Margret Kainer. It was resurrected by the bank as a place to put the proceeds from the sale of their art and other holdings that had been seized by the Nazis in the 1930s when the couple fled to Paris to escape the Nazis. The couple died childless in the 1960s.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO