Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

[CollectGU]

Re: PLEAS READ

Let me add an interesting twist to this. A public look up of Historic Auctions through the State of Florida's division of Corporations turns up this:http://ccfcorp.dos.state.fl.us/corpw...y/cormenu.html.

Florida Limited Liability

HISTORIC AUCTIONS, LLC

PRINCIPAL ADDRESS6677 AUGUSTA BLVD.SEMINOLE FL 33777 Changed 04/30/2006

MAILING ADDRESSP.O. BOX 76311ST. PETERSBURG FL 33734 Changed 04/30/2006

Document Number
L05000104087FEI Number
203793883Date Filed
10/21/2005State
FLStatus
ACTIVEEffective Date
10/21/2005Total Contribution
0.00

Registered AgentName & AddressWELLS, BRADLEY
115 CORDOVA BLVD. NE
ST. PETERSBURG FL 33704
Manager/Member DetailName & AddressTitleWELLS, BRADLEY
115 CORDOVA BLVD. NE

ST. PETERSBURG FL 33704 MGRMBROWN, JAMES H
6677 AUGUSTA BLVD.

SEMINOLE FL 33777 MGRM
Annual ReportsReport YearFiled Date200604/30/2006



No EventsNo Name History Information

Document ImagesListed below are the images available for this filing.

04/30/2006 -- ANNUAL REPORT10/21/2005 -- Florida Limited Liability

So, we see that Brad Wells of ASI is an owner of the company, AND is also listed on many of the items being offered as the lead authenticator under Global's authentication company...You all can make your own judgements on the importance of this info when purchasing

[sammy]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

CollecGU:

Very nice work.

Can we SHOUT!!!

"CONFLICT OF INTEREST & DECEITFUL"

Talk about the fox guarding the chicken house.

Something sure smells foul between Global Authentication and Historic Auctions.

[allstarsplus]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

As I always say, do your own homework and forget about the worthless LOA's. The only problem here, however, is that my homework is done and the teacher appears to be on vacation!

Howard Wolf
hblakewolf@patmedia.net

Howard is right---do your homework. Like all game used items in any auction, there are certainly some question marks as we point out on the Forum. I think this is their 2nd auction and I think we established the last time that Brad Wells had a relationship with the company.

This time they appear to have brought in a bat expert in John Taube. The jerseys you have to do your homework on for sure, and yes there is a potential conflict which is the same as many auction houses and dealers that authenticate items in their control.

I won several lots in their last auction which included some HR Derby items and Carlos Lee HR bats. Great items and I was happy with my final bid price too.

I sold some items that are in the auction, and I can tell you for sure those items all had 3rd party authentication outside of any other authentication added to it such as the Cal Ripken 2001 Game Used signed base which has MLB Authentication and several pictures of Cal signing.

With that said, I bid on items in almost all the big auctions and especially like the way Mastronet and Robert Edwards Auctions does their auctions. I also bid on Lelands and GF where I have to do more of my own homework.

I have done my homework on the items I will bid on here so outside of that my only issue is that I wish they had more detail on these items in the descriptions. I did by the way let James know that and he has been great about emailing me back and we also spoke by phone yesterday.

[ironmanfan]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

The problem lies in that there are many people (people in this forum included) who choose NOT to do any homework, but choose to simply email other members (or post) and simply ask "is it real?" etc...It's my opinion that these are the people who are "stuck" with these items and try to entangle themselves from them down the road......DO YOUR HOMEWORK!

[Oil Can Dan]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

The problem lies in that there are many people (people in this forum included) who choose NOT to do any homework, but choose to simply email other members (or post) and simply ask "is it real?" etc...It's my opinion that these are the people who are "stuck" with these items and try to entangle themselves from them down the road......DO YOUR HOMEWORK!

I'm new to the hobby. Can you help me understand how exactly I should "do my homework"? I'm considering bidding on a '92 Pedro Martinez jersey. I searched everywhere I could think of in hopes of finding pictures, other examples, etc of a 1992 Pedro jersey to no avail. I cannot find a picture of the back of Pedro in either of the two games he appeared in. I have never seen a Dodger jersey with my own eyes, so I have nothing to go on. I've posted a question about it in this forum but have not received a response.

I do not mean to sound ignorant, but what else can I possibly do in terms of "homework"? I am completely willing to invest the time, but short of searching the web or asking others who have been doing this for a lot longer than me, I do not know what else to do. It seems I should not rely on just about any COA, so then what?

The more I read, the more I suspect I should just quit while I'm ahead.

I apologize if this post is a hijack of the thread.

[sammy]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

Oil Can Dan:

Don't give up.

Part of doing "homework" is to use various resources.

This forum is one of your resources.

Those of us that can provide an answer usually will.

There are a lot of knowledgeable "teachers" who post and watch this forum.

Ask your questions.

[trsent]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

I am confused, and I know my views on this topic are often not appreciated, but it is the other side of the story.

What is the Conflict of Interest that is such a big issue on these forums?

I understand, an auction house may write a letter of authenticity for an item then sell it in their own auction house. If the customer is aware of this practice in advance, what is the conflict?

When an artist paints a print, then sells a serigraph with his letter of authenticity, what is the issue? Is there really a difference? Grey Flannel has been a major auction house for years, and they write letters for the merchandise they offer. The buyer is aware of this in advance, so this should be a non-issue. If as a buyer you take issue that you can buy a game used item at Grey Flannel Auctions that has a letter of authenticity from Grey Flannel then you shouldn't bid and there is no issues.

Someone wrote earlier today (or last night) about at item they bought from Mastro that had a Mastro letter. When they found an issue with the item a few years later, they were satisfied with the service they received in returning the item.

I know MEARS has a policy that entails publicly posting items that their staff has on consignment with major auction houses. This is a great policy, not necessary but it shows great faith in the industry on their part. (Read my next post for a recent post by Dave Grob on the MEARS Online forum that was pretty interesting)

When I used to do public and private autograph sessions with professional athletes, I would write certificates of authenticity for autographed items that I obtained in person and then would sell myself. I stood behind the merchandise, just as I do now with game used sports items that I obtained myself and now sell and write my own letter of authenticity for.

I am not discussing the Historic/Global issue here because it is all too new to know what many may consider conflicts at this point. I believe for some time many of us assumed there was a connection with there companies, but it was never made public until this morning's post.

Authenticating an item and selling it are practices that are common in this industry and must be accepted as long as the selling outfit makes it clear to the industry their interests in both ends. This is fair and it puts everything in prospective so then the potential buyer can do their own homework before spending their money.

[Eric]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

When an auction house offers 3rd party authentication- it is just that- authentication from a party that does not have a financial interest in the item.

If this conflict exists, like seeing Brad Wells listed as authenticator for an item with an ASI sticker it should be disclosed that Mr. Wells is acting as authenticator on an item that came from a company Wells also runs.

Seems pretty obvious to me.
Eric

[mr.miracle]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

For those of us new to Historic Auctions specifically, it seems to me that while doing ones own homework is paramount to making sure that the items you are bidding on are genuine and real; most of us would not find it necessary to also search public records to uncover affiliations and ownership issues that should be made perfectly clear by the company. While I always make it a habit to ask questions about an auction or company that I have not dealt with or am not familiar with, I highly doubt that many people would generally feel the need to search the Florida Corp. business logs in search of company affiliations prior to bidding in an auction so this is great investigative work. If this information regarding Mr. Wells affiliation with Historic Auctions as well as his role as authenticator to this auction representing Global Authentics was or is a matter of easily accessible public record or more importantly is displayed prominently on Historic Auctions web site then there is no problem. I was not aware of this affiliation and am not aware of its existence on the auctions website. This coupled with the rather questionable explanations that have been floated as to the relationship here between Global's role in this auction and who if anyone is authenticating Historic's items leaves me to see nothing but a clear conflict of interest or at the very least, a very diligent attempt to cover up the relationship of Brad Wells to this auction and as the authenticator. It would be nice if we were to receive some type of explanation from both parties.

Brett

[allstarsplus]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

Eric - You are right, it is obvious and disclosure is needed, but come on here----haven't we discussed the ASI-Brad Wells-COA issue already when they did their last auction. On this auction, each item Brad authenticated, it clearly states his name as the authenticator so I don't think he is hiding anything.

Like Joel said, Grey Flannel and other auction houses are doing it as well and so are most Dealers. My opinion is take the COA, but do your homework. The Forum has uncovered 3 questionable jerseys and Historic removed them. That is great, but don't put a shadow over every item as they have some amazing Babe Ruth items, Alex Rodriguez, etc.

It may be overkill, but on some items like signed game used bats there are 3 authenticators which includes Brad.

• James Spence Authentication
• Global Authentication/Brad Wells
• PSA/DNA - John Taube

Let's hope they state their conflict policy and hopefully post their authentication COAs and let's get on to the next subject.

[Global Authentication]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

Regarding the questions directed to Global Authentication: Global Authentication has a very strong anti self interest policy. What this means is that any Global Authentication expert cannot authenticate any item that they have a financial interest in. This applies whether they own the item or if they have at one time sold the item. Because of our policy Global will only be authenticating Historic auction items submitted to Global Authentication independent of the auction itself. This policy insures that any item authenticated by Global does not violate our anti self interest policy.

Steve

[Eric]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

Regarding the questions directed to Global Authentication: Global Authentication has a very strong anti self interest policy. What this means is that any Global Authentication expert cannot authenticate any item that they have a financial interest in. This applies whether they own the item or if they have at one time sold the item. Because of our policy Global will only be authenticating Historic auction items submitted to Global Authentication independent of the auction itself. This policy insures that any item authenticated by Global does not violate our anti self interest policy.

Steve

In response to your post, why was Mr. Wells allowed to authenticate ASI items under the Global name in the first place?
Were you not aware what he was authenticating?
Eric

[allstarsplus]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

Regarding the questions directed to Global Authentication: Global Authentication has a very strong anti self interest policy. What this means is that any Global Authentication expert cannot authenticate any item that they have a financial interest in. This applies whether they own the item or if they have at one time sold the item. Because of our policy Global will only be authenticating Historic auction items submitted to Global Authentication independent of the auction itself. This policy insures that any item authenticated by Global does not violate our anti self interest policy.

Steve

Steve - With your anti-self interest policy, will those Global COAs be rescinded from the Historic auction?

[HistoricAuctions]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

Just like every huge conspiracy theory that people try to conjure up, there is a usually a simple answer that will solve the alleged mystery. Brad Wells, at one time, owned a stake in Historic Auctions. However, earlier this year, he sold of his entire interest in the company and does not currently own any stake in the company. As I’m sure most of us know, the government moves at the speed of a snail and has not updated their website. All the proper paperwork was filed and we are awaiting them to update the site.

I really am disappointed with this message board. This information was posted this morning and thirteen more posts were made and not a single person bothered to call or email me regarding this situation. Again, this just shows that everybody on this board is more concerned with creating and spreading rumors rather then actually discovering the facts. We harp on people for not researching items before they buy or purchase them, but we don’t bother to do the same ourselves regarding other issues.

You ALL know my email address and our phone number is on our website ( 888-955-2211 ). If any of you actually cared about discovering the truth rather than just trying to keep your industry title as the “self-appointed memorabilia police”, you would have contacted me directly.

This really is a non-issue from here-on-out. If anybody wishes to discuss actual memorabilia with me or real issues, feel free to contact me.

[HistoricAuctions]

Re: Conflict of Interest- Auction Houses and Authenticators

In response to your post, why was Mr. Wells allowed to authenticate ASI items under the Global name in the first place?
Were you not aware what he was authenticating?
Eric

To be clear... Brad Wells authenticated items with an ASI sticker. Not items that ASI consigned. There is a huge difference.