How can a U.S. court claim jurisdiction over a wreck site in international waters?
This question was addressed in great detail by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in its March 24, 1999 Opinion affirming RMST as salvor-in-possession of the wreck. R.M.S. Titanic, Inc. v. Haver, 171 F. 3d 943, 959, 967-8 (4th Cir. 1999), cert. denied, 120 S. Ct. 74 (1999). The Court noted that Article III of the U. S. Constitution extends the judicial power of federal courts to all cases of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction. The drafters of the Constitution placed maritime law under national control because of its intimate relation to navigation and to interstate and foreign commerce. The body of admiralty referred to in Article III preceded the adoption of the Constitution. It was the well-known and well-developed venerable law of the sea. Nations have applied this body of maritime law for 3,000 years or more. This maritime law preceded the Constitution. The Court of Appeals went on to say that this body of maritime law has the force of law, not from extrater
