Simpsons Solicitors is pleased to report the release of Collections Law & Ethics by Shane Simpson and Ian McDonald.
Collections Law & Ethics addresses the key legal and ethical issues that arise in public museums, galleries, libraries and archives in Australia and New Zealand.
The authors, Shane Simpson and Ian McDonald, are Special Counsel at Simpsons Solicitors. Both are pre-eminent cultural property lawyers, with decades of experience advising collecting and other cultural organisations throughout Australia and New Zealand.
Collections Law & Ethics will be an invaluable resource for collecting and cultural institutions. It covers key legal issues ranging from copyright and contract, and core collecting activities (including acquisitions, loans, deaccessioning and repatriation), to ethical issues and frameworks in relation to First Nations peoples and materials. It is written in plain English and includes examples, checklists and practical advice.
The foreword was written by Distinguished Professor Larissa Behrendt AO. She states: “Collections Law and Ethics forms a definitive guide that is both practical and profound. It provides checklists, frameworks, and legal analysis, but they also illuminate deeper truths: that collections are never neutral, that governance is always a moral act, and that law and ethics are inseparable from cultural sovereignty.”
Collections Law is published by Federation Press, and is available here.
For collecting and cultural institutions advice and assistance, please contact Ian McDonald or Jules Munro.