to the website of the new Court of Arbitration for Nazi-Looted Cultural Property. In our work as the Executive Committee of the Court of Arbitration, we are guided by the hope that claims relating to cultural property confiscated as a result of Nazi persecution can be asserted more effectively in the future, and this is the goal we have set ourselves.

From 1 December 2025, individuals who were persecuted by the Nazi regime or their descendants will be able to initiate proceedings before an arbitration panel. The Court of Arbitration is an alternative dispute resolution mechanism for dealing with disagreements concerning the restitution of cultural property confiscated as a result of Nazi persecution. It was established by the Federal Government, the Länder and the national associations of local authorities, with the involvement of the Central Council of Jews in Germany and the Jewish Claims Conference.

Arbitration proceedings may be initiated by the victims or their descendants if the institution holding the cultural property has issued a standing offer or agrees to the individual case being referred to the Court of Arbitration. Institutions holding cultural property may also initiate proceedings, providing the other party agrees.  

On this website you will find a list of the standing offers submitted to date. Here you will find a list of the 36 arbitrators and an overview of the stages of the procedure. In addition, this website provides the key documents underlying the work of the Court of Arbitration, along with the contact details of our Service Desk, which you may consult in the event of questions and applications.

Yours,

Elisabeth Steiner and Peter Müller

The 21st edition of the newsletter of the Network of European Restitution Committees on Nazi-Looted Art has been published. Marking the end of France's chairmanship of the network, this edition looks back on the European conference ‘Recovered memories’, organised by the CIVS in Paris on 26 June 2025. It also contains information on the projects of the Austrian Commission, which will take over the chairmanship of the network in 2026, and on the establishment of the Court of Arbitration for Nazi-looted Cultural Property, which began its work in Germany on 1 December 2025. Finally, the five member commissions of the European network also discuss their latest recommendations in this issue.