The Battle for the Rules of Space: Law, Lawfare and National Security

Modern national security depends on space systems that are both indispensable and vulnerable. This talk examines the international legal framework governing military activity in space, the distinction between militarization and weaponization and the ways China, Russia and the United States use legal positions and diplomatic forums to advance strategic interests. It will explore lawfare as both a tool of competition and a source of vulnerability, particularly as States compete to shape emerging norms for proximity operations, counterspace activity, debris, resource extraction and lunar operations. In this environment, legal silence, inconsistency and poor strategic messaging can surrender ground as surely as operational failure. Michelle Hanlon, a space lawyer, is the Executive Director of the Air and Space Law Program at the University of Mississippi and Director of the world’s first and only Master of Science in Air and Space Law degree. She serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Space Law and the Journal of Drone Law and Policy. Michelle co-founded For All Moonkind, a nonprofit that is the only organization in the world focused on safeguarding cultural heritage in outer space. She was instrumental in the development of the One Small Step Act. For All Moonkind is a Permanent Observer to the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. Michelle is also a founding partner of ABH Space Law.