Flotsam, << FLOT suhm, >> jetsam, << JEHT suhm, >> and lagan, << LAG uhn, >> are terms used to describe goods in the sea. Goods found floating in the sea are called flotsam. The term includes both goods cast from a vessel in distress and goods that float when a ship sinks. Jetsam is goods voluntarily cast overboard in an emergency, usually to lighten the vessel. Jetsam sinks and remains under water. Lagan, or ligan, is cargo which someone has sunk with the intention of recovering it later. The person usually ties a buoy to lagan to mark its location.
Flotsam, jetsam, and lagan are not abandoned or derelict property. That is, the owner or master of the ship does not intend to give up the goods permanently. The owner intends to recover the goods at some later date. Under the maritime law, flotsam, jetsam, and lagan remain the property of their original owner, no matter how long they lie in the sea. The finder may only hold them for salvage, which is a legal reward the owner pays to the finder. Many courts rule that the owner must claim the goods within a year after someone else has recovered them.
