State Responsibility for Private Activity in Outer Space

Abstract

The Outer Space Treaty provides a framework for determining whether a space activity is the national activity of one particular State, and subsequently, whether State responsibility for private activity in outer space is based on the international customary law of State responsibility. The traditional interpretation of Article VI may serve well to resolve past and present legal dilemmas, but the evolving nature of the space industry presents new dilemmas that are unaccounted for in the application of the traditional interpretation. This particular analysis can be particularly useful, and should be applied in some capacity, in evaluating States responsibility for outer space activities.