Of Black Pearls and Lost Jewels
Kendall Costanzo
Who really owns the legendary pirate ship known as the Black Pearl? This dispute centers on the ownership of the infamous pirate ship. Originally known as the Wicked Wench, the vessel was owned by the East India Trading Company (EITC) and captained by Jack Sparrow. After Sparrow disobeyed orders and freed enslaved individuals, the Company, led by Cutler Beckett, had the ship destroyed. Years later, Sparrow reclaimed the wreck by making an agreement with Davy Jones, who raised the ship from the sea. Sparrow renamed it the Black Pearl, transformed it, and became an infamous pirate captain. The EITC never reclaimed or repaired the wreck, and it was lost to the sea.
Sadly, Sparrow’s tenure as captain was short-lived. His first mate, Hector Barbossa, led a mutiny and stole the ship, casting Sparrow ashore on a deserted island. Barbossa made himself captain of the Black Pearl and used it for his own ventures. This raises a personal property dispute over who holds the strongest legal claim to the vessel—the EITC, Jack Sparrow, or Hector Barbossa.
To resolve this dispute, it is helpful to look at the doctrine of possession from Armory v. Delamirie. In that case, a boy found a jewel and took it to a jeweler, who attempted to keep it. The court held that “the finder of lost property has a valid claim to the same against all the world except the true owner.” Possession creates a rebuttable presumption of ownership. Because in Armory the jeweler had no superior claim, the finder prevailed.
This doctrine of possession provides insights into resolving the dispute over this legendary ship. First, Jack Sparrow can claim finder’s rights. After the EITC burned and sunk the ship, it was lost because it was left at the bottom of the sea, like the jewel that was left in a chimney in Armory. Sparrow was the first to recover and take possession of the Ship, which Sparrow renamed the Black Pearl. Like in Armory, where the finder had no knowledge of a competing claimant, the EITC never reasserted title and Sparrow had no knowledge of a competing claimant. Like the jeweler in Armory who attempted to take possession of the jewel, Barbossa stole the Black Pearl from Sparrow and marooned him. However, Sparrow still had a superior claim to the Black Pearl because his claim as a finder is superior. Even if the ship is considered abandoned, and the first possession rule is used, Jack Sparrow still likely has the strongest claim because he was the first possessor of the abandoned ship and there is no competing complainant.
Jack Sparrow has the strongest claim over the Black Pearl. The outcome aligns with the principles of personal possession where those who find and take possession of lost property should have a superior claim of ownership.
Kendall Costanzo is a law student at the American University Washington College of Law.
Image: meshmar2, BlackPearl.
