In short, [defendant Jerry] Wolkoff’s rationales did not make any sense and were not credible…. I had observed his demeanor on the witness stand and his persistent refusal to directly answer the questions posed to him by me and under cross-examination. I did not believe him. Moreover, it simply stuck in my craw that I was misled that the demolition of the buildings was imminent when there was not even an application for a demolition permit extant. I was appalled at this conscious material misrepresentation.

— Judge Frederic Block (E.D.N.Y.), denying the defendants’ motions for a new trial in the landmark 5Pointz case, concerning the application of the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990 (VARA) to street art. In his ruling on the motion for reconsideration, Judge Block got the opportunity to reinforce his credibility determinations — and defend his original opinion, which columnist Scott Alan Burroughs described in these pages as “elegant and thorough” — in advance of the Second Circuit’s consideration of the case.

David Lat is editor at large and founding editor of Above the Law, as well as the author of Supreme Ambitions: A Novel. He previously worked as a federal prosecutor in Newark, New Jersey; a litigation associate at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz; and a law clerk to Judge Diarmuid F. O’Scannlain of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. You can connect with David on Twitter (@DavidLat), LinkedIn, and Facebook, and you can reach him by email at

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