Legal Definitions - free seas

Free seas refer to the open ocean or high seas beyond the jurisdiction of any country. This means that no country has control over these areas.

For example, the Mediterranean Sea is a large landlocked part of the ocean, while the rough sea refers to the ocean swell. A sea of documents means an extremely large or extended quantity of documents.

Under traditional international law, the high seas began 3 miles from the coast, but today, the distance is generally accepted to be 12 miles. Coastal shores now have a 200-mile exclusive economic zone under the 1982 U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Overall, free seas are areas of the ocean that are not under the control of any country and are open for navigation and other activities.