A Paris judicial court has rendered a shocking judgment dismissing all claims by Dominique Aubert, a former photographer with the Sygma press agency, in his attempt to recover or gain access to his photographic archives. The ruling, which extends beyond Aubert's individual case, affects the entire French photojournalistic heritage of the last century and appears to bury one of the biggest scandals involving the photographic patrimony of the Sygma press agency.
On November 21, 2025, Judge Irène Barnac, assisted by Vice President Alix Fleuriet and Judge Arthur Courillon-Havy of the 2nd section of the 3rd chamber of the Paris Judicial Court, rejected Aubert's demands to recover or access the thousand reports he created at the risk of his life between 1983 and 1995 while working as a photographer-reporter for Sygma, which later became Corbis Sygma. According to available information, this judgment appears to close more than fifteen years of various legal procedures all aimed at shedding light on this major scandal.
The case centers around the fate of Sygma's massive archives, which fell into the bankruptcy assets of Corbis-Sygma. At the September 19 hearing, none of the lawyers representing Getty Images, BTSG, or Master Gorrias deigned to answer questions from the press. The companies Locarchives and Unity Glory International, a subsidiary of Visual China Group, were not represented. The proceedings revealed nothing about the judicial liquidator's maneuvers or the contracts between BTSG, Corbis, Getty, and the Chinese companies.
To understand the stakes involved in this photographic heritage, it's essential to recall that in 1966, Hubert Henrotte (1934-2020), Raymond Depardon, Gilles Caron (1939-1970), Léonard de Raemy (1924-2000), and Jean Monteux created the Gamma agency, opening what is often called the "golden age of French photojournalism." Gamma agency spawned Sygma (1973-2010) and a third competitor, Sipa Press agency. These three press agencies took up the torch and archives of the Dalmas (1956-1967), Reporters Associés (1954-1971), and Apis (1961-1973) agencies, which in the post-war period had pioneered a new style of photographic reporting that broke with Anglo-Saxon traditions and French studio photography customs.
The Sygma photo archives, which for thirty years were the world leader in press photography, feeding the biggest illustrated magazines, were split into two parts following Corbis Sygma's bankruptcy in May 2010. The first part, consisting of Sygma photographers (fewer than a thousand) who had signed American law contracts with the parent company Corbis Corporation owned by Bill Gates, was not affected by the judicial settlement. However, their contracts were transferred on January 22, 2024, by Corbis Corporation to Unity Glory International, a VCG subsidiary, with exploitation rights outside China going to Getty Images - all in complete opacity.
The other part of Sygma's photographic heritage, involving thousands of photographers and probably millions of images, became an asset of the bankrupt company due to the judicial liquidation of Corbis Sygma, treated like office furniture and coffee machines. These assets were entrusted in 2010 to judicial liquidator Master Gorrias and BTSG company to compensate priority creditors and recover their fees. It is indisputable that Dominique Aubert's photographs, as a salaried Sygma photographer, were part of this asset lot - something the latest judgment denies.
The problem with this photographic heritage is that photographers had only three months to assert their rights with the judicial liquidator. However, thousands of Sygma's collaborating photographers and freelancers were based worldwide, may have changed addresses multiple times, and never received the information. L'Œil de l'info has been contacted several times by photographers who, through random Google searches, discovered the Corbis Sygma bankruptcy sometimes five or ten years after the fact. Under French copyright law, even if the support material (film) isn't their property, authors retain moral and patrimonial rights.
Stéphane Gorrias, described as "the man in the shadows," was already a star at the court when appointed as Corbis-Sygma's judicial liquidator. Fifteen years ago, the liquidator didn't know what to do with the enormous stock of images stored by Corbis at Garnay (Eure) with Locarchives. Nobody wanted them - the National Library of France said no, the Ministry of Culture remained silent. The November 21 judgment explains that Getty Images claims "the works requested for restitution (or access) are not identified," despite Aubert providing a complete list of his thousand reports.
The judgment adds that Getty Images "neither holds nor exploits the material supports of the works as it had certified by bailiff." This clarifies nothing about the fate of Aubert's photographs or the rest of the Sygma archives. Like all Sygma photos, Aubert's were stored at Garnay by the former Locarchives company. When Corbis was sold to the Chinese, this stock passed "under opaque conditions" to Getty Images' responsibility, consisting of both photos under Corbis Inc. contracts sold to the Chinese and those under the Corbis-Sygma liquidator's responsibility.
BTSG company - the "G" standing for Gorrias - argues that all of Aubert's grievances against it were rejected by the Versailles Court of Appeal in 2019 and the Paris Court of Appeal in 2023, demonstrating that claims against it are unjustified and subject to a three-month statute of limitations after publication of the judicial liquidation procedure opening judgment in the BODACC, making Dominique Aubert's claims time-barred.
In summary, Dominique Aubert, attempting to recover his photographic reports, acted too late and made imprecise demands despite presenting a complete listing of his reports. Aubert cannot demonstrate who is despoiling him or where his photographs are. Logically, losing the case, Aubert should have been ordered to pay the legal fees of the parties he sued. However, the court "rejects the demands of Getty Images, BTSG, and Master Gorrias under article 700 of the civil procedure code." This leniency sounds like an admission of guilt.
As Judge Renaud van Ruymbeke once told photographers, everyone knows who the villains are, but rendering an equitable judgment for Aubert would have announced too many financial complications. If only Dominique Aubert had the courage and means to pursue legal action, his victory would likely have inspired many imitators. Photographers in the shadows were waiting for Aubert's victory to rush into the breach, while too many American and Chinese companies feared it, not to mention a judicial liquidator too powerful to be questioned.
Consequently, nothing will be known about the fate of an important part of the French photographic heritage from the agency that was the world leader in press photography for thirty years. L'Œil de l'info will continue its investigation to understand what happened to the Sygma archives, welcoming testimonies and documents that might help shed light on this scandal that affects France's photojournalistic patrimony.
