Prof. Frans von der Dunk

“ [The space race is] no longer limited to the United States, Russia, and China.… We are living in a multi-polar world also in outer space, and, of course, that raises a number of important legal issues as well. ”

Frans von der Dunk is a professor at Nebraska College of Law and an expert in aviation law; international law; European union law; and space, cyber, and telecommunications law. Von der Dunk is also the owner of a consultancy company for space law and policy, Black Holes B.V. and the series editor of "Studies in Space Law." Prior to teaching at Nebraska, he was an Associate Professor and Director of Space Law Research at Leiden University. In 2004, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Award of the International Institute of Space Law of the International Astronautical Federation. He was also awarded the Social Science Award of the International Academy of Astronautics in 2006 and the Social Science Book Award in 2015 for the Handbook of Space Law. Von der Dunk acts as visiting professor on international and national space law and policy, international air law, and public international law at about 50 universities across the world. He has written more than 180 articles and publications, many of which are featured in prestigious publications such as, American Bar Association Journal, Journal of Space Law, Michigan State International Law Review, POLITICO Space, and U.S. News & World Report. Von der Dunk was nominated Member of the European Space Sciences Committee of the European Space Foundation, the first lawyer ever. In 2007, he was appointed by the Association of Space Explorers as the sole lawyer on the Panel on Asteroid Threat Mitigation. He has also served as advisor to the Dutch Government, many foreign governments, The European Commission, the European Space Agency, the United Nations, and many other organizations.

Talks by Prof. Frans von der Dunk

Space Law — Rights and Resources

At the height of the space race in the 1960s, countries around the world first ratified the Outer Space Treaty to prevent any nuclear conflict from extending into outer space and to ensure its use for peaceful purposes. Today, there’s a new kind of space race, one that involves private tourism and resource mining and extraction. And with more players entering the field, including nation-states like India and China and private companies like Blue Origin and SpaceX, how will existing treaties apply? Space law expert Professor Frans von der Dunk explores how the Outer Space Treaty and customary international law applies to modern space activities and addresses the open questions of property rights for celestial and lunar natural resources and liability issues when private enterprises operate in space.

Watch Part 2 of Space Law — Rights and Resources.

Space Law — Rights and Resources (Part 2)

At the height of the space race in the 1960s, countries around the world first ratified the Outer Space Treaty to prevent any nuclear conflict from extending into outer space and to ensure its use for peaceful purposes. Today, there’s a new kind of space race, one that involves private tourism and resource mining and extraction. And with more players in the mix, including nation-states like India and China and private companies like Blue Origin and SpaceX, how will existing treaties and customary international law apply? In part 2 of this 2-part series, space law expert Professor Frans von der Dunk discusses how the Outer Space Treaty applies to space tourism and other private space activities and explains the laws on militarization and weaponization of space.

Watch Part 1 of Space Law — Rights and Resources.

Non-lawyer
Lawyer