Precedent and flag law govern prizes at sea

Legal thinkers and judges shaped the rules applied to maritime prizes, including Hugo Grotius, Lord Stowell, and William Murray. Stowell's cases supplied guidance used during the First World War, while Murray's work became a basis for English and American prize law. Much of the law of the sea is uncodified and precedent-based, closer to common law than to a single comprehensive statute. The high seas have no territorial sovereign, so rules depend on international agreement, enforcement, and accumulated judgments. A merchant vessel also carries the jurisdiction of its flag state, meaning interference can become an insult or casus belli instead of a purely commercial act.