The Manfred Lachs Space Law Moot Court Competition and its Impact on the Development of Space Law
- Paper number
IAC-06-E4.2.07
- Author
Mr. Ricky J. Lee, Ricky J. Lee & Associates, Australia
- Coauthor
Mrs. Tanja Masson-Zwaan, IISL Secretary, The Netherlands
- Coauthor
Mr. Gabriel Lafferranderie, European Space Agency/Headquarters, France
- Coauthor
Mr. Milton Smith, Sherman & Howard, LLC, United States
- Coauthor
Mr. Alberto Marchini, France
- Year
2006
- Abstract
In 1992, during the World Space Congress, the International Institute of Space Law organised a moot court competition among a few American law schools to promote awareness and interest in space law among law students. Following the death of Judge Manfred Lachs in 1993, the competition was renamed the Manfred Lachs Space Law Moot Court Competition and was expanded to Europe. In the past few years, the Asia Pacific Regional Round was added to the Lachs Moot, with over 60 universities participating in the Lachs Moot in 2006 across all three regions, namely the Asia Pacific, Europe and North America. Except in 1993, the finals of the Lachs Moot have been held to coincide with the International Astronautical Congress and have been presided over by three sitting judges of the International Court of Justice. This paper will discuss the history of the Lachs Moot and its possible impact on the development and growth of space law. Particular attention will be paid to the impact of the Lachs Moot in areas where space law has had limited development in the past, its likely growth in the near future and the implications of this in the education of space law around the world.
- Abstract document