There is an anime that is based around this concept where the future Earth is filled with too much space debris, so the protagonist joins in a new type of garbagemen (garbagewomen) to go on spacewalks to retrieve space debris. It's one of my favourite animes, since it doesn't deal with teenage drama like most anime.

[1] https://myanimelist.net/anime/329/Planetes

Tricky to make plausible, since most space debris is barely recognizable once it reaches the surface - metals would be deformed and have highly questionable metallurgical characteristics due to the extreme heat of reentry, essentially being of no value beyond raw material for reprocessing, and you'd have an easier time scavenging such things from the ruins of an industrial society - and a much easier time finding scrap in condition to be reused without so much rework.

I could see it as a subplot focused around high-value, highly durable items such as RTGs, though. A device that generates even a low level of electrical power without requiring fuel or favorable environmental conditions could easily have a broad range of uses in a post-apocalyptic story, and they are designed to survive reentry intact so as to avoid dispersing radioactive isotopes into the atmosphere or across the ground.

There's this story[1] from Compelling Sci-Fi issue 8 that might quite close on the fallen space junk scavenging part.

[1] http://compellingsciencefiction.com/stories/the-dirt-dances....

I almost added that the idea was free for the taking if someone wanted to write a sci fi story about it. I didn't add it because I felt it might come off too pretentious.

There's a lot of ways it can go, including a tech thriller, espionage, or even recovering something specifically needed in a post apocalyptic world. I'm sure there are more ideas.

It could even be hard science fiction, instead of just fantasy!

Alas, I've too many writing projects on my plate. Run with it, if you want. I'll even read it.

"Ghost Fleet" touches on OP's original idea of laws in space, not so much this idea.

It's a good pulp world war 3 techno novel.

Defiance had advanced tech/debris falling from the orbiting wrecks of alien ships.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defiance_(TV_series)