Admiralty Court
Categories: Regulations
In the olden days, there were separate admiralty courts for any maritime issues (events that happen on the water) involving contracts, injuries, collisions, pollution, salvage ownership, and any other civil actions. Today, these cases are heard in the regular federal or superior court system, but when these courts oversee anything involving maritime issues, they are considered to be admiralty courts.
Let’s say you are out scuba diving and you happen to come across some buried treasure. Or perhaps your main job in life is to go out and look for abandoned pirate loot. You find millions of dollars in gold bullion and claim it as your own, but Captain Hook’s great-great-great grandson says it belongs to him. You bring the case to an admiralty court that does not have juries, so you will have to convince the judge that you deserve to keep the booty.
