New technologies have
made it possible to reach historic shipwrecks once thought lost forever.
However, the value of some these ships and the objects recovered from them,
both to individuals and nations, has given rise to legal challenges and
disputes over who owns recovered objects and who should pay for their salvage
(an example being the long-running legal dispute between nations and national
agencies over the RMS Titanic). This panel will explore the various legal issues
surrounding the recovery and ownership of historic shipwrecks and their cargo,
including U.S. law and the UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the
Underwater Cultural Heritage.
Business
meeting at program conclusion.