Sara Tam, 3L at Fordham Law School, has just published
In Museums We Trust: Analyzing the Mission of Museums, Deaccessioning Policies, and the Public Trust, in the Fordham Urban Journal. Here's the abstract.
This
Note demonstrates that the emphasis on collections management policies
undermines a museum’s mission to provide public access to its
collections and exhibitions, whether the emphasis originates from museum
professional organizations, legislative and judicial action, or media
criticism. It highlights the relationship between museums and the
public, exploring the museum’s duty to the public, the public’s support
of museums, and the public’s expectations of museums. Defining this
relationship contributes significantly to shaping museum standards.
This Note provides a comprehensive examination of the varying
perspectives on the legal and ethical duties currently imposed on
museums.
Part I provides an overview of the museum’s mission to
collect and exhibit art for the benefit of the public. It also
describes the historical development of museum standards and
deaccessioning policies. Part II evaluates the effectiveness of current
and proposed policies on deaccessioning and the use of deaccessioning
sales proceeds, as well as the theories supporting those policies. Part
III posits that museums can be trusted to develop and enforce standards
that reflect equally the public interest in museums themselves, their
collections, and the educational experiences museums offer. Therefore,
this Note suggests that legislative intervention is unnecessary to
protect the public interest in museums and their collections.
New Law Review Article: In Museums We Trust
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