The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office has filed an emergency motion to halt the Berkshire Museum’s art sales, including two works by Norman Rockwell. It follows Wednesday’s hearing for a preliminary injunction.
Berkshire Superior Court Judge John Agostini questioned whether Rockwell’s children and other opponents even have the authority to question the museum’s fiduciary duty.
“Every institution around the commonwealth, if they know its members has the ability to do what the attorney general has been specifically, and I believe exclusively allowed to do, it would create havoc,” Agostini says.
Agostini said the attorney general’s involvement in the hearing to halt the Berkshire Museum’s sale of 40 artworks was unclear. The AG’s office said earlier in the week it was backing efforts to stop the sale.
Attorney General Maura Healey filed a motion late Wednesday asking the court to allow her office to become a plaintiff if those already challenging the museum don’t meet the necessary legal standing.
