The admiralty law of the United States has long recognized that the law of salvage rewards the voluntary salvor for the successful rescue of life or property imperiled at sea. In order to have a valid claim for having rendered salvage services, the salvor must show that the property saved was imperiled, that his services were voluntarily rendered, and that he was successful in whole or in part to the saving of the property.
A salvor who has earned the right to a salvage award for the successful voluntary salvage to a vessel in peril has a preferred maritime lien on the vessel. However, a salvor must surrender possession of the vessel to the owner on demand if the owner posts reasonable security for the claim. If the owner declines to post sufficient security to pay salvage charges, the salvor must turn the vessel over to the U. S. Marshall and proceed to foreclose the maritime lien.
It is improper for the salvor to deny the owner or the owner’s agents access to the vessel or property to inspect it or preserve it.
In the case of submerged and sunken vessels, when no owner exists or can be determined, the party who recovers property abandoned is entitled to application of the "law of finds". Under this doctrine, title to abandoned property is given to the person who actually finds and takes possession of the property. Most cases decided under the law of finds involve property which was lost long ago and which has remained under the sea and beyond the reach of its original owners for many years.
A salvor obtains a right to possess the property but not the right of ownership, and the salvor holds the saved property for the benefit of the rightful owner. However, if the law of "finds" applies, then the finder actually obtains possession and ownership of the property. In the case of a "find" the court does not have to set a value because by definition the finder takes title to the property free and clear of all other claims. Remember the rule, "finders keepers losers weepers".
In 1987 the United States Congress passed the Abandoned Shipwreck Act of 1987. The Act provides that the United States has title to all abandoned shipwrecks found in U. S. waters within the 3-mile limit; however, the U. S. Government then passed title to the state in whose waters the shipwreck was located. If the shipwreck is outside of the territorial waters, then the general admiralty law applies. In order for someone to a finder, they must prove that the shipwreck has been abandoned by its original owners. If it has not been abandoned by its original owners, then the person recovering either the vessel or its contents would be treated as a salvor and would be entitled to a portion of the value retained.
The United States has taken the position, and it is generally accepted in maritime law, that a sovereign government never abandons its vessels or aircraft. Thus, whenever a military wreck is discovered, whether it be a vessel or a plane, the United States still asserts its ownership interest. However, in a recent Federal Court case involving salvage rights to a submerged World War II Navy plane allegedly in 500 feet of water less than one mile off the coast of Miami the court rejected the Navy's claim and sided with the private salvor. This was an important case for those interested in salvaging the many scattered World War II Navy planes on the bottoms of Lake Michigan and Lake Washington.