Calgary gallery sues Norval Morrisseau Estate for $1.45M

Michelle Allan · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 22, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

Norval Morrisseau Estate Ltd. has been outspoken against the profuse fraud of the precocious artist's work. Now, it faces a $1.45 cardinal suit claiming it defamed an creation assemblage by implying its works could beryllium fakes. 

Cory Dingle has spoken retired against creation fraud to aggregate media outlets, including CBC, arsenic Norval Morrisseau Estate Ltd.'s enforcement director. He's present being sued alongside Norval Morrisseau Estate Ltd. for defamation and breach of declaration by a Calgary creation gallery, a suit filed successful Alberta's Superior Trial Court connected March 11 claims. 

EA Studios claims that Dingle's statements to imaginable buyers implied the assemblage "is, generally, an unethical enactment of debased motivation quality that sells inferior and perchance fake artworks that were obtained done an abusive, and perchance criminal, exploitation of a susceptible Indigenous artist," according to the claim. 

None of the claims person been proven oregon tested successful court.

"The Estate looks guardant to defending itself against these allegations and owed to the ongoing litigation we bash not person immoderate further comments astatine this time," said Dingle successful an email to CBC. 

Art assemblage claims breach of contract, defamation

As a prolific creator who did not support records of his works, Morrisseau's catalogue has go a fashionable people for fraud and forgeries. 

The suit claims EA Studios (Jasper) Ltd. assemblage had an statement with Norval Morrisseau Estate Ltd., represented by Dingle. 

Norval Morrisseau Estate Ltd. would reassure imaginable customers that the coating they wanted to bargain was an authentic Morrisseau, and Dingle would get 10 per cent of immoderate palmy merchantability to clients helium referred to the gallery, according to the connection of claim. 

The suit claims Dingle did the nonstop opposite. Instead, it claims Dingle implied EA Studios' Morrisseau paintings whitethorn be  fakes, and suggested they acquisition authentic works straight from himself and/or Norval Morrisseau Estate Ltd.

"Specifically, Dingle and/or the alleged property failed to reassure the plaintiff's imaginable clients of the worth and authenticity of the plaintiff's works, and alternatively falsely disparaged the plaintiff and past tried to, oregon did, person said imaginable clients to acquisition works from Dingle and/or the alleged estate," says the claim. 

The documents assertion the assemblage hired 2 backstage investigators successful October 2024 to airs arsenic imaginable buyers funny successful paintings successful its inventory aft becoming suspicious that Dingle was not holding up his extremity of the deal. EA Studios claims the backstage investigators had 2 calls with Dingle, during which helium made defamatory statements that undermined the gallery's credibility and reputation.

EA Studios claims  it has owned and sold Morrisseau's enactment since the 1980s. The gallery's laminitis had "a long-standing relationship and affirmative concern relationship" with the precocious artist, the tribunal documents say.  

It argues that Dingle's and/or Norval Morrisseau Estate Ltd.'s statements to imaginable buyers implied the assemblage "is considered, by Norval's children, to beryllium a scammer," and "committed a transgression enactment by stealing and selling Norval's idiosyncratic belongings".  

The assemblage claims the "defamatory statements" are false, undermined its estimation and outgo it clients. It claims Norval Morrisseau Estate Ltd. made further defamatory statements successful a societal media station that it is the lone seller of authorized, ineligible prints of Morrisseau's work. 

Lawsuit claims Morrisseau's children supported authenticity of fraudulent works

The suit claims during the past years of his life, Morrisseau fought to support fraudulent copies of his enactment from spreading successful the market. It besides claims that shareholders of Norval Morrisseau Estate Ltd. did small to halt the fraud. 

"From astatine slightest the aboriginal 2000s on, for fiscal gain, the big children supported and promoted the authenticity of galore of the fraudulent works and assisted, by spreading mendacious information, successful undermining efforts to exposure and halt the fraud," reads the assertion filed against Norval Morrisseau Estate Ltd. and Cory Dingle. 

Morrisseau's biologic children sued his property successful 2010 aft being excluded from his will, according to the claim. 

The creator from Ojibway Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek First Nation successful northwestern Ontario died successful 2007. He bequeathed each of his worldly and creator assets to person Gabor Vadas. The parties settled retired of court, and Vadas's and Morrisseau's children divided the estate, said the tribunal documents. 

The assertion against Norval Morrisseau Ltd. and Cory Dingle was filed March 11, 2025. The defendants had not yet filed a connection of defence astatine work time.