During the two-day conference at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s headquarters in Paris, European art market representatives from both the private and public sector met to discuss means to fight the illicit trafficking of cultural property. This expert meeting gathered 20 speakers and over 140 participants focused on the role and scope of due diligence obligations when dealing with cultural goods. The organizers wanted to raise awareness on the importance of abiding by internationally set standards when dealing with cultural goods, as the illicit trafficking of cultural property, more often than not, is tied to organized crime, money laundering, and even terrorism financing. In order to minimize the risk of dealing with objects of dubious provenance, the adherence to a standard set of rules—so-called due diligence obligations—increases the level of vigilance (“red flags”) before, during, and after the time of purchase. By doing so, buyer and seller will render their purchases more transparent and safe.

During the first day of the conference, presentations by experts in the field of cultural heritage law outlined existing international legal standards that stand as minimum due diligence obligations, which are most prominently stated in the 1995 Convention on Stolen or Illegally Exported Objects.^{Footnote 1} Marina Schneider, senior legal officer and treaty depository of the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law, explained how this Convention lays out for the first time in international public law a concrete set of rules on how to conduct due diligence for both stolen and illegally exported goods (such as the “character of the parties” to the purchase, the “circumstances of the acquisition,” and so on).

Those obligations were incorporated verbatim into the text of Council Directive (EU) 2014/60, which harmonized, for the first time, due diligence obligations for all 28 European Union (EU) member states.^{Footnote 2} Walter Zampieri, head of the Cultural Policy Unit at the EU Commission’s Directorate-General for Education and Culture, explained that due diligence obligations will also play a role in the forthcoming EU regulation on the import of cultural goods, which is currently being discussed under ordinary legislative procedure.^{Footnote 3}

Subsequently, the discussion centered on concrete steps that one should follow before a purchase in order to adhere to the due diligence framework in international public and European law. Such steps ensure a minimum level of scrutiny and might include, among others, conducting a search in international databases such as the INTERPOL’s database on stolen works of art^{Footnote 4} or consulting tools like the International Council on Museums’ Red Lists.^{Footnote 5}

As this conference aimed at creating a direct and mutually beneficial dialogue, the second day of the conference featured mostly private sector representatives on the panel. Dealer and collector associations outlined the role that soft law and self-imposed ethic codes play in ensuring that its members adhere to due diligence obligations.

Due to the conference set-up and curation of invitations, participants from both sectors were present in almost equal numbers. This ensured spirited, yet fruitful, exchanges as individual dealers who are usually only represented by their umbrella organizations could voice their concerns. Consequently, this created an amicable atmosphere for discussions, both onstage and offstage. It became apparent that a multi-stakeholder approach is necessary in order to join efforts to fight against illegal trade. Participants welcomed inputs that suggested having recourse to pre-existing approaches and solutions, even (or especially) when those ideas did not stem from the art market and/or the cultural heritage community.^{Footnote 6}