R.M.S. Titanic Inc., the Atlanta-based company holding exclusive salvage rights to the Titanic wreck, is facing legal challenges after announcing plans to auction 100 artifacts from the shipwreck’s collection. The auction proposal, made earlier this year, marks a significant shift for the company, which has for decades maintained that the entire collection would remain intact and not be sold.

The company appeared Thursday in U.S. District Court in Norfolk, Virginia, to defend the planned auction before Judge Rebecca Beach Smith. Central to the hearing was the company’s argument that the court lacks jurisdiction over the 100 artifacts in question because those items were recovered in 1987 and granted to R.M.S. Titanic by a French court. Under maritime law, salvage claims for wrecks in international waters can be adjudicated in various admiralty courts worldwide. R.M.S. Titanic initially took its claim for the 1987 salvage to France but brought subsequent claims for later recovered artifacts to the federal court in Norfolk, home to a hub of maritime law expertise.

During the hearing, Judge Smith questioned the necessity of the sale given the company’s financial situation, noting that R.M.S. Titanic is supported by wealthy institutions. The company’s attorney, Brian Wainger, responded that the firm is in “financial straits” and needs the auction proceeds to manage debts and fund the conservation and curation of the remaining artifacts.

Opposing the sale, the U.S. government, represented by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), argued that R.M.S. Titanic is bound by prior legal agreements requiring that the collection remain intact and not be sold to private collectors. Accordingly, NOAA urged the court to block the auction.

The contested artifacts include a bronze cherub statue from the grand staircase, a crow’s nest bell, a diamond pendant necklace, a safe, a pocket watch, a ship steward’s shirt, and various personal items belonging to passengers and crew, such as coins, jewelry, and banknotes. Originally, the company planned to announce the auction in April and conduct a worldwide tour of the items to attract buyers, offering VIP previews aimed at collectors, museum curators, and institutions. However, Judge Smith halted all marketing efforts pending a ruling on legal ownership.

The Titanic wreck lies approximately 400 miles off Newfoundland’s coast and rests nearly two and a half miles below the ocean surface. The first salvage expedition was launched in 1987, resulting in the recovery of about 1,800 artifacts. Over seven expeditions from 1987 to 2004, R.M.S. Titanic brought up around 5,500 items, with the Norfolk federal court granting exclusive salvage rights to the company in 1994. The firm has not conducted any artifact salvage since 2004 but undertook scientific expeditions in 2010 and 2024.

The company has traditionally generated revenue through public exhibitions rather than artifact sales. Its permanent shows in Las Vegas and Orlando, along with five traveling exhibitions currently in locations including Cleveland, Portland, Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic, have drawn over 35 million visitors worldwide.

The auction plan has sparked significant controversy, with 18 letters submitted to the court opposing the sale. The International Congress of Maritime Museums, representing about 250 museums globally, has voiced “overwhelming consensus” against the auction, stating that member institutions would refuse to exhibit any artifacts sold. France’s government also expressed strong opposition, sending a letter to the U.S. State Department. The contested 1987 artifacts were recovered during a joint American-French expedition, and a French court’s transfer of title included an agreement that the collection would remain whole and items would not be sold outside of exhibition purposes.

R.M.S. Titanic Inc. emerged from bankruptcy in 2019 under new ownership but remains embroiled in financial difficulties, including a lawsuit by a contractor seeking more than $4 million. In court filings, the company cites significant operating losses but has not detailed the extent or causes of its financial challenges.

Judge Smith has yet to rule and is expected to issue a written decision in the coming weeks, which will determine the fate of the proposed artifact auction and set new precedents in the complex legal landscape surrounding the Titanic wreck and maritime salvage rights.