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Art Discount Disputes Are Alive and Well – Tax Court Rejects Estate’s Expert’s Value, but Allows Unique Discounts

May 2017

In Estate of Kollsman v. Comm’r, the Tax Court redetermined the value of two 17th Century “Old Master” paintings after rejecting the estate’s expert’s appraisals. The estate’s expert was ignored, as the court found the expert/appraiser: (a) was conflicted and motivated by personal economic interests, (b) exaggerated the risks associated with cleaning the artworks, and (c) didn’t offer comparable sales analysis and didn’t adequately explain how one of the paintings was sold a few years post-death – by Sotheby’s – for approximately 5 times his estimated value (for tax purposes)

Art Discount Disputes Are Alive and Well – Tax Court Rejects Estate’s Expert’s Value, but Allows Unique Discounts

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