Review of Existing Legal Principles that Enable or Disable the Colonisation of the Moon and Mars

Paper number

IAC-05-A5.1.04

Author

Mr. Ricky J. Lee, Ricky J. Lee & Associates, Australia

Year

2005

Abstract

The history of space exploration and commercialisation has so often repeated the process of developing strategies and plans that do not address legal issues and then finding that such legal issues may become disabling obstacles.  With the development of strategies to establish colonies on the Moon and Mars, legal issues must be addressed from the beginning.  This is particularly the case because one of the foundations of modern society is the rule of law and this must remain the same for our extraterrestrial colonies.

This paper seeks to consider the activities needed for various stages of colonisation and review the existing status of the law that may enable or disable the activity and, where the law does not exist, what laws should be created that would enable the activity in a manner consistent with other existing principles of law.  These activities include:
1)	exploration for suitable settlement sites;
2)	human settlement;
3)	resource exploitation for colonisation purposes;
4)	governance in the colony;
5)	rule of law and justice in the colony; and
6)	diplomatic relationships with countries on Earth.

Abstract document

IAC-05-A5.1.04.pdf

Manuscript document

IAC-05-A5.1.04.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).

To get the manuscript, please contact IAF Secretariat.