The Art Law Podcast Art Law at Christie's with Maggie Hoag
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Nov 12, 2025 Maggie Hoag, Senior VP and Deputy General Counsel at Christie's, shares her fascinating journey from art intern to a top art lawyer. She delves into the evolving role of legal work at auction houses and the impact of globalization on art law. Maggie discusses the importance of direct communication with sellers to resolve issues efficiently and shares insights on integrating legal teams into business strategies. She also offers advice for aspiring art lawyers on training and gaining practical experience in this unique field.
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From Christie's Intern To Art Lawyer
- Maggie traced her path from art-history internships at Christie's Chicago to Stanford Law to art-law through John Henry Merryman.
- She used law school and externships at the San Francisco City Attorney's museum unit to combine art passion with legal training.
Big-Firm Training Fueled Generalist Skills
- At Hughes Hubbard Maggie trained as a litigator while doing art law nights and weekends and pro bono.
- The firm work taught her legal rigor and memo-writing even as she advised museums and wrote governance policies.
A Small, Global Legal Network
- Christie's legal team is global but compact, with transactional, compliance, disputes and risk roles across New York, London, Paris and Hong Kong.
- The cohesion across offices makes multi-jurisdictional consignment work practical and centralized.