| Publication |
2013.
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| Summary/Abstract |
Odyssey Marine Exploration, Inc. v. The Unidentified Shipwrecked Vessel is a recent controversial case decided by U.S. courts concerning a Spanish historic shipwreck on the high seas. This article analyzes the case and its implications from three aspects. First, the different laws applicable to shipwrecks reflect diversified approaches to the preservation of shipwrecks on the high seas. Second, compared with the U.S. Foreign Sovereignty Immunity Act and the UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage, the UN Convention on Jurisdictional Immunities of States and Their Property better defines "commercial activity" by using the nature of the transaction as a primary criterion and its purpose as a supplement. Moreover, warship wrecks and the cargo on board are inseverable for sovereign immunity purposes. Third, a legal vacuum exists for the protection of a former colony state's legitimate interests over a historic shipwreck.
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