Judge Dismisses Met Museum Admissions Class Action Lawsuit

A New York state judge dismissed a class action lawsuit seeking to put an end to the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s “suggested donations” policy, finding that the policy does not violate state law or the museum’s lease.

On Oct. 30, Judge Shirley Wener Kornreich rejected claims from plaintiffs who argued that the MMA’s suggested donation of $25 was deceptive to patrons of the museum and violated a law from 1893 that established free admission in exchange for free rent and operating funds from the city. Instead, Judge Kornreich found that prohibiting the museum from charging admission would conflict with the law’s intent to promote education among New Yorkers. In her decision to dismiss the class action lawsuit, Judge Kornreich said that the museum implemented the admission policy in 1970 while faced with budget constraints.

“A large part of the museum’s operating funding would be cut, and the objective of educating the public and encouraging commerce undermined,” Judge Kornreich said.

Plaintiffs Theodore Grunewald and Patricia Nicholson initially filed the class action lawsuit on Nov. 14, 2012, seeking to enjoin the museum from charging admission and to require the MMA to inform patrons of their right to enter the museum for free. Filip Saska and Tomas Nadrchal, residents of the Czech Republic, and Stephen Michelman filed a nearly identical complaint on March 5, 2013. The MMA sought to dismiss both class action lawsuits.

The New York State Legislature created the MMA in 1870 “for the purpose of … encouraging and developing the study of fine arts, and the application of arts to the manufacture and practical life, of advancing the general knowledge of kindred subjects, and, to that end, of furnishing popular instruction to recreation.” The MMA was later classified as “an educational corporation.” In 1878, the City of New York granted a perpetual, rent-free lease to the MMA, which was located in Central Park.

A significant budget deficit caused the MMA to seek the option of charging patrons an admission fee so that it could continue to provide reasonable public access to the facility. The city agreed to the MMA’s request and allowed the museum to charge reasonable admission with some exceptions. Judge Kornreich concluded that the plaintiffs’ issues are related to the city’s approval of the admission fee, not the fact that the MMA asks for a donation.

“The City is not before this court,” Judge Kornreich wrote in her decision to dismiss the class action lawsuit. “Therefore, the relevant inquiry is whether plaintiffs have standing to sue the Museum for its failure to admit all members ‘free of charge,’ which they argue violates the 1893 Act and the (lease agreement with the City).”

The judge found that “the 1893 Act was intended to benefit both plaintiffs and the Museum.” As the policy stands, anyone is able to visit the MMA. “Actual access, provided in a way that ‘nudges’ visitors to donate, is not incompatible with the 1893 Act. Such a policy furthers the goal of the 1893 Act – providing sufficient funding to ensure access to all.”

The plaintiffs are represented by Michael S. Hiller of Weiss & Hiller PC and Andrew G. Celli Jr. of Emery Celli Brinckerhoff & Abady LLP.

The Met Museum Admissions Class Action Lawsuits are Filip Saska, et al. v. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Case No. 650775/2013 in the New York Supreme Court and Theodore Grunewald, et al. v. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Case No. 158002/2012, in the New York Supreme Court.