Space Law Seminar

3 units

Drop Deadline: 11:59 p.m. on the day after the first class session. This three-credit seminar introduces students to key aspects of outer space law. Outer space law is the body of public and private international and domestic law applicable to, and governing, human space-related activities. Space-based technologies are central to our lives today. Satellites are used extensively for telecommunications around the world, as well as for daily activities including online banking, providing GPS coordinates, and tracking weather. Yet space development is advancing quickly pace – think of Space X’s proposed Mars settlement, as well as the current space race to the Moon – and the question arises as to whether outer space law is being outpaced by science and whether the militarization of space and environmental issues relating to space are being addressed by international law. This seminar will introduce students to the core concepts found in relevant international and domestic law governing human activities in outer space. During the first half of the seminar, we will explore space law through readings and interventions by guest speakers. Each student will pick a research topic and write a seminar paper on a space law topic of their choosing, that they will present to the class during the final four weeks of the term.