Ethics of experts and curators

An expert may not assess a work in which they have a financial interest, whether they bought it, intend to buy it or receive a commission on the sale. They must declare any relationship with the parties. If in doubt, they withdraw.

Fees must never depend on the result of the expertise: an expert paid according to the authenticity they certify is no longer independent.

The expert keeps the client's information and the results of their examinations confidential, except where legally required or agreed. They refrain from circulating provisional conclusions. They write accurate reports, without exaggeration or omission, and correct their errors as soon as they discover them.

They keep their files for thirty years and hand them to the courts on request.

For sacred or cultural objects, the expert consults the communities concerned, respects restrictions on access and photography, and avoids any disrespectful presentation. They immediately report any suspicion of looting or illicit removal to the authorities and the BIOP database.

They refuse to authenticate an object whose lawful origin is not demonstrated without an explicit reservation.

A committee of nine members examines reports, hears the people concerned and imposes proportionate sanctions: reprimand, suspension, withdrawal of accreditation, exclusion from the network. It is independent of the Academy's management.

Decisions are reasoned and may be appealed to a second committee.

Anyone may report a suspected breach, confidentially, via the Desk. Good-faith reports are protected; abusive reports are penalised. A thirty-day response time is guaranteed.

The Academy publishes an anonymised report each year on the cases handled.