Sorayama dedicates this page to his fellow artists and collectors who hopefully will always find themselves in business relations that care most about arts rather than easy money from fraudulent piracy of their coveted creations. LINK: Wikipedia OR Google Knol Wiki

MAJOR COURT DEFEAT: for Tamara Bane Gallery et al and Robert S. BANE and Bane is ruled to have taken actions that include Embezzlement by bankruptcy Justice Hon. Sheri Bluebond. The Appeal to the 9th Circuit held oral arguments presented during February 3, 2010 and will conclude its rulings/finding in the months ahead. The  Appeal process may examine some of alleged abuses of the legal process noted during the Appeal argument and potential abuses occurring as early as trial, the months after trial court's rulings/orders and in particular the extensive legal team that came on board about the time of the first post trial judgment exam of debtors' master image archivist and giclee printer. On / about 15 January 2010, a three Judge panel of Bankruptcy Appellate Panel analyzed the facts concerning trial court and bankruptcy court rulings against debtor. The trial court rulings and subsequent bankruptcy court rulings stand in place under the review and scrutiny of higher courts' appeal panel. (citing United States Bankruptcy Appellate Panel of the 9th Circuit: BAP No. CC-09-1108-MoPaH). Another Bankruptcy Appeal by creditor artist Sorayama is pending. After the Appeal oral arguments, Bane filed to appeal the BAP ruling and the trustee has indicated her offices and Bane have a viable bidder for contested Bane inventories of Sorayama arts which remain physically not audited for over 2 years of Chapter 7 process fraught with asset omissions and potential irregularity.

2010 Update and Art Sale:
Court Ordered Execution Sale of Fabian Perez art and famous pin-ups: dozens of Perez giclees / pin-ups. email: artspaceky@aol.com with your contact for full details of this outstanding opportunity in 2009.

For Immediate Release - Art Sale, Major Defeat and Embezzlement
December 23, 2008, Los Angeles Bankruptcy Judge Sheri Bluebond dealt Robert S. Bane a major defeat by granting a further judgment in favor of Hajime Sorayama, finding that
the $2 million dollar judgment awarded by United States District Court Judge Florence-Marie Cooper in September 2007 cannot be discharged in bankruptcy because it represents monies awarded to Sorayama due to the willful and malicious conduct of Bane and that the conversion of Sorayama’s art that gave rise to the dispute constituted embezzlement by Bane.

Artist Sorayama Wins Cases on Sept 6, 2007 / Judgment deemed non-dischargeable
in bankruptcy onDec. 23, 2008. The district court has authorized sales of seized art during 2009:    September 6, 2007: Artist Hajime Sorayama represented by Weiner & Laurin, LLP won a significant judgment awarding damages against his publisher Robert Bane Ltd. and Robert Bane personally due to Bane's failure to properly account for the proceeds from sales of 33 original paintings. The court also found that Bane was dumping cut rate Sorayama limited edition prints through eBay/online. The United States District Court in Los Angeles found that Bane perpetrated a continuing fraud against the well known artist whose works are part of the permanent collections of the Smithsonian and Museum of Modern Art in New York. The total award included punitive damages against Bane personally of $1 million and a permanent injunction against further dumping. It was concluded that there was willfull and malicious injury by the defendants who caused harm to the plaintiff / artist.

After plaintiff Sorayama obtained a writ of attachment to secure the artist’s claim, Fabian Perez and Bane submitted a third party claim arguing that Fabian Perez art never belonged to Robert Bane Editions. The District Court denied the third party claim. In trial testimony, the Sales Director testified on behalf of the defendants who lost the case. The complete federal court rulings since September 2007, are available through the federal court system at central district 9 of California Federal Courts. Presiding Judge Florence Marie-Cooper

LINKS: Dunn and Bradstreet /AllBusiness

Los Angeles Business Journal

L.A TIMES Calendar Section Article

Wikipedia OR Google Knol Wiki

Within 84 Notable Works possessed by Bane, are a sub-category of 33 or potentially as many as 84 Sorayama originals / master images that are embezzled and or pirated arts that public may assist to recover for reward on case by case basis. The public may be able to help find some of these images for a reward that www.sorayama.net will email terms on a case by case basis. Some of the pieces of interest at this time are as follows:
1. Embezzled / defrauded Image No. HS94.

2. Embezzled / defrauded Images No. 2001.16 embezzled original was recovered about Jan. 2010 and documented that the pirated aspect still exists in potential counterfeiting including ongoing contempt issues of the federal court system. It is wasting tax payer dollars while accelerating frauds during the court sessions; Image No. 2001.21 is an embezzled and pirated piece that is still open to recovery should someone come across it. [2]

3. Any Sorayama pieces unlawfully designated WP or Working Proof that come with a Certificate of Authenticity from a gallery or publisher that have sold such pieces on line and or by mail that is documented in an acceptable format--contact for details with your details about the piece.

4. Any Sorayama piece with a Certificate of Authenticity (CoA) from a Bane gallery or Bane publisher where the CoA is dated and signed between 2007 and 2010 time frame.