The Nonesuch was a Supreme Court case that dealt with the issue of maritime salvage. The case involved a ship called the Nonesuch, which had been abandoned by its crew and was in danger of sinking. The crew of a nearby vessel, the William, noticed the Nonesuch and decided to salvage it. The William's crew was able to save the Nonesuch and bring it to port. The owners of the Nonesuch then sued the William's crew for salvage, claiming that they were entitled to a portion of the value of the Nonesuch as compensation for their efforts. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled in favor of the William's crew, finding that they were entitled to a salvage award. The Court reasoned that the William's crew had acted in good faith and had taken reasonable steps to save the Nonesuch, and thus deserved to be compensated for their efforts. The Court also noted that the William's crew had acted without any expectation of reward, and thus their actions should be rewarded.

In The Nonesuch, the Supreme Court was tasked with determining whether a vessel that had been sold in good faith to a purchaser who did not know of an existing lien on the ship could be held liable for payment of that lien. In this case, the court found in favor of the original owner and against the purchaser. Justice Field delivered a dissenting opinion arguing that it would be unjust to hold an innocent party responsible for debts they were unaware existed at time of purchase. He argued further that if such liability were imposed upon purchasers, it would have far-reaching implications and create uncertainty within commercial transactions as buyers may no longer feel secure when purchasing vessels from third parties without first conducting extensive research into potential liens or other encumbrances attached to them.