Space Policy
Who owns the vast riches of space? We know that there are great deposits of materials of great value on the Moon, in asteroids, and scattered throughout the solar system. The spacefaring powers of Earth will seek them out to support our expansion throughout cislunar space and beyond. But to avoid the resource-related conflicts that have plagued us on Earth for centuries, new legal regimes much evolve to supplement and, in some cases, replace existing legal structures. We are seeing some of the first attempts at formal policy with the Artemis Accords, but these are not yet universally accepted and only begin to cover the many needs of a truly spacefaring species. Join some of the top legal scholars in space law as we strive to see the future of policy in the domain of space.
Chair:
Michelle L.D. Hanlon
University of Mississippi School of Law
For All Moonkind
Chair:
Michelle L.D. Hanlon
University of Mississippi School of Law
For All Moonkind
Michelle is Co-Director of the Air and Space Law Program at the University of Mississippi School of Law and its Center for Air and Space Law. She is the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Space Law, the world’s oldest law journal dedicated to the legal problems arising out of human activities in outer space and the Faculty Advisor for its sister publication, the Journal of Drone Law and Policy. Michelle is a Co-Founder and President of For All Moonkind, Inc., a nonprofit corporation that is the only organization in the world focused on protecting human cultural heritage in outer space. For All Moonkind has been recognized by the United Nations as a Permanent Observer to the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. Michelle is also the chair of the International Committee of the National Space Society and the mentor to the newly-formed National Space Society Legal Fellows program. Michelle received her B.A. in Political Science from Yale College and her J.D. magna cum laude from the Georgetown University Law Center. She earned her LLM in Air and Space Law from McGill University. Prior to focusing on aviation and space law, Michelle was engaged in a private business law practice. Her legal career commenced with the restructuring of sovereign debt for a number of South and Latin American countries and evolved into the negotiation and implementation of cross-border technology mergers and acquisitions. Her subsequent solo practice advised entrepreneurs across four continents on all aspects of bringing their innovative ideas to market: from basic corporate formation to financings and buyouts. Michelle continues to provide advice and counsel in respect of all aspects of air, space and cyber law through the consulting firm of ABH Aerospace, LLC.