Luke Nikas

Nikas represents individuals and companies in almost every type of litigation across the globe, including in an array of industries such as art, advertising, banking, consumer goods, law firm business, insurance, pharmaceutical, health care, professional sports, media and entertainment, technology and cybersecurity, and real estate.  He has represented numerous Fortune 50, 100, and 500 companies, celebrities and other prominent individuals, and high-net worth individuals, and has been called upon as a trusted advisor by these and other clients involved in highly sensitive matters that require sound judgment and discretion and in disputes where civil, criminal, and public relations concerns intersect. Among several other cases, Nikas successfully defended Alec Baldwin at trial in the criminal case arising out of the accident on the Rust movie set, won a dismissal (affirmed on appeal) of a lawsuit against a major auction house arising out of a cancelled sale of a significant painting, won a multi-million dollar dispute between two managing partners of a large New York City law firm, obtained the dismissal of a $400 million class action against a New York City real estate firm, won an appeal in the New York State Court of Appeals on behalf of workers who cleaned up downtown Manhattan after 9-11, and won hundreds of millions of dollars on behalf of clients in antitrust price-fixing cases.  During the credit crisis, Nikas advised several investment banks regarding approximately $200 billion in troubled credit transactions.

Nikas also is Co-Chair of the firm’s Art Litigation and Disputes Practice and has one of the most prominent and successful art litigation practices in the world.  A prominent art publication called him one of the most “highly influential” art lawyers in the world after he led the defense in an art forgery case dubbed by ArtNews as “The Art Trial of the Century.”  Nikas is also a professor at Harvard Law School, where he created and teaches Harvard’s course on Art Law Litigation. He represents several of the most significant participants in the art world, including major artists, art foundations, museums and museum directors, art collectors, dealers, galleries, auction houses, conservators, and art investment companies.  Among several other matters, he has recovered priceless works of art by Andy Warhol and Pablo Picasso; prosecuted and defended fraud, contract, negligence, and racketeering cases involving allegations of forgery and problematic provenance; located stolen artwork in foreign jurisdictions and countries; litigated disputes regarding art contracts and transactions, ownership of art, and transfers under the UCC; obtained insurance coverage for clients facing art-related lawsuits; advised catalogues raisonné about litigation risk management; handled numerous copyright and trademark matters for artists, companies, and foundations, including issues related to fair use, non-infringement, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and the Architectural Works Copyright Protection Act; and advised prominent individuals regarding repatriation issues. He has also advised clients regarding the sales and attempted sales of NFTs, and obtained a preliminary injunction in federal court for Jay-Z that successfully prevented the sale of an unauthorized NFT of a well-known music album.

Nikas is sought after for his expertise and commentary. He has been profiled and interviewed extensively, including by Lawdragon. He has been interviewed by Anderson Cooper on CBS’s 60 Minutes, CNBC’s show American Greed, and for various podcasts, movies, a Netflix documentary, news articles, and publications. He co-founded an international arbitration court, called the Court of Arbitration for Art, that is dedicated to the resolution of art law disputes and was nominated for “Best Innovation” in the field of arbitration by the Global Arbitration Review. He has also given numerous lectures and presentations, including at the New York State Legislature, National Arts Club, Columbia Law School, Harvard Law School, New York University Law School, University of Virginia Law School, New York Law School, the Appraisers’ Association Art Law Day, the Center for Art Law’s inaugural “Distinguished Lecture,” University of Southern California Intellectual Property Institute, Mondo. NYC music conference, Sotheby’s Art Institute, the Gagosian Artists’ Archives & Estates Symposium, the New York City Bar Association’s Art Law Committee, and the International Arbitration Club of New York. 

Nikas earned his J.D. from Harvard Law School, where he graduated magna cum laude.