# Nazi-looted art lawsuits spark legal clash

> Jewish heirs sue Los Angeles and Auschwitz museums over Nazi-looted paintings.
- Title: Nazi-looted art lawsuits spark legal clash · Seattletimes
- Summary: Jewish heirs sue Los Angeles and Auschwitz museums over Nazi-looted paintings. Jewish heirs filed lawsuits to return Nazi-looted paintings from Los Angeles…
- Keywords: nazi-looted-art, jewish-federation, norton-simon-museum, auschwitz-memorial, holocaust-survivors, california-law, holocaust-expropriated-art-recovery-act, news, local, Nazi-looted, art, lawsuits
- Source: Seattletimes — https://seattletimes.com/entertainment/new-laws-trigger-a-fresh-legal-fight-over-nazi-looted-art-in-los-angeles-and-auschwitz-museums
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: nazi-looted-art, jewish-federation, norton-simon-museum, auschwitz-memorial, holocaust-survivors, california-law, holocaust-expropriated-art-recovery-act, news, local
## Jewish heirs file lawsuits
Jewish heirs of Holocaust victims and their representatives filed two lawsuits in California staking claims to Nazi-looted paintings at Los Angeles and Auschwitz museums.
## Lawsuit targets Norton Simon Museum
The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles sued Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena for return of Lucas Carnach the Elder’s 1530 oil-on-panel masterpieces 'Adam and Eve'.
## Second lawsuit seeks Mengele paintings
Daughters of Holocaust survivor Dinah Gottliebova Babbitt sued for return of watercolors she was forced to paint for Josef Mengele at Auschwitz.
## Museums claim legal title
Both museums state they legally hold titles to the artworks and intend to continue public display without returning them.
## Artworks create emotional conflict
Jewish families with intergenerational trauma clash with museums over preserving Holocaust history through Nazi-looted art.
## Nazi art theft history
Nazi regime seized over 600,000 artworks from Jewish families between 1933 and 1945, now held in museums worldwide.
## Jewish Federation plans to help survivors
Jewish Federation of Los Angeles will use net proceeds from recovered art to support about 2,500 Holocaust survivors in Los Angeles.
## New California law enables claims
California Assembly Bill 2867, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September 2 2024, requires state law to apply in lawsuits by California residents for Nazi-looted art.
## Federal law updates recovery process
President Donald Trump signed the Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery Act of 2025, removing expiration dates for art recovery claims.
## Museum defends art ownership
Norton Simon Museum claims federal court in 2018 confirmed proper title to Cranach paintings, which were sold through illicit auction in Berlin in 1931.
## Auschwitz Memorial defends paintings
Auschwitz Memorial says watercolors of Roma victims painted by Mengele must remain to document his crimes and not be mischaracterized as Nazi-looted art.
## Advocates hope cases proceed
Art Ashes founder Joel Greenberg says new laws ensure cases are heard on merits and help Jewish families reclaim art for up to six years.
## Key takeaway

Jewish heirs filed lawsuits to return Nazi-looted paintings from Los Angeles and Auschwitz museums after new California and federal laws strengthened claims.