Hauser & Wirth and art shipping company Artay Rauchwerger Solomons face trial over charges of evading U.K. sanctions by allegedly making artist George Condo's 2021 work on paper, *Escape from Humanity*, available to a person connected with Russia in 2022. The U.K. Crown Prosecution Service brought the charge in November, and a judge has scheduled a 10-day trial for January 2028, with a hearing on May 5, 2026, for arraignment. Hauser & Wirth has stated it will plead not guilty, while the shipping firm, which went into voluntary liquidation in April 2024, did not respond to requests for comment.
This case is significant as it is the first known criminal prosecution related to the U.K.'s ban on supplying luxury goods to persons connected with Russia and the first corporate prosecution under U.K. Russia Sanctions Regulations. It tests how sanctions regulations apply to artworks and marks an escalation in law enforcement's scrutiny of the U.K. art market, which has faced increased regulatory oversight since 2021, including anti-money laundering mandates and new obligations to report sanctions breaches.