Law Commons^™

As The Grapefruit Turns Sixty, It’S Time To Get Serious About Clean Up In Outer Space, Humaid Alshamsi, Roy Balleste, Michelle L. D. Hanlon

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

The ability to physically interact with an on-orbit object is an idea that has been stymied by its great cost. Yet the rewards are incalculable. Autonomous on-orbit servicing (OOS) vehicles can potentially repair or salvage an ailing satellite or remove it from orbit. The former can help recoup the considerable investment that goes into the development and construction of a satellite, and the latter would reduce space debris. In short, the development of OOS should be promoted. This paper will explore the legal ramifications and complications of unmanned on-orbit servicing missions. After reviewing the international framework and the current state …

Distributed Ledger Technology In The Airline Industry: Potential Applications And Potential Implications, Roberto Cassar

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

The objective of this article is to merge the growing phenomenon of distributed ledger technology with the airline industry. This article attempts to attain its objective by succinctly clarifying what distributed ledger technology truly is without explaining the minutest of its details. Further, this article seeks to achieve its objective by suggesting potential manners in which this technology could apply to the airline industry; this is an endeavor that, so far, does not seem to have been undertaken in a strict academic sense. Lastly, this article strives to link these potential applications to the empire of the law by shedding …

Event Horizon: Examining Military And Weaponization Issues In Space By Utilizing The Outer Space Treaty And The Law Of Armed Conflict, Ryan M. Esparza

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

This article takes the position that any lingering ambiguities surrounding the militarization and weaponization of outer space should be analyzed via the joint scope of the Outer Space Treaty and the Law of Armed Conflict. This article pulls key provisions from Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions because of Additional Protocol I’s application in international conflicts and affirmation of the four Geneva Conventions. After an examination of key Additional Protocol I provisions and their application to space, this article conducts a joint analysis of the Outer Space Treaty and the Law of Armed Conflict. This joint analysis examines three …

Why Jurisdiction Over Airmen Enforcement And Certificate Cases Should Be Transferred From The National Transportation Safety Board To Federal District Court, Alan Armstrong

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Recent Developments In Aviation Law, Justin V. Lee

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

The Faa’S Mental Health Standards: Are They Reasonable?, Katie Manworren

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Safety Meets Efficiency: The Medical Device Drone’S Role In Bringing About A Workable Regulatory Framework For Commercial Drones, Luke Strieber

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Space Traffic Management Standards, Paul B. Larsen

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

This article is about the need for space traffic standards. It specifically focuses on international space traffic standards. Space traffic is currently tracked by radar. But, many objects—mainly space debris—moving in outer space are too small to be tracked and are still dangerous. The Kessler Syndrome predicts frequent collisions with increasing space debris in outer space in the near future. A four-fold increase in navigable outer space objects is likely. Therefore, organization of space traffic is urgently needed.

Solving The Space Debris Crisis, Paul B. Larsen

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

Space debris is a growing public safety problem. As described by the Kessler Syndrome, the increasing accumulation of debris will soon hinder and eventually preclude access to outer space unless the trend is swiftly reversed. The Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee’s (IADC) Space Debris Mitigation Guidelines, as adopted by the United Nations (UN) Committee for the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS), are voluntary but are enforced as mandatory regulations by major space powers; however, the guidelines only apply to new debris. The European Space Agency’s (ESA) 2017 Space Debris Conference concluded that existing space debris guidelines are inadequate and …

Atc Privitization: A Solution In Search Of A Problem, Ross W. Neher

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

With recent headlines such as “Trump Budget Includes ATC Giveaway” and “Trump Calls for Air Traffic Control Spin-Off in Budget,” privatization of air traffic control (ATC) services in the United States is a hot-button political issue. Indeed, USA Today reports that President Donald Trump’s call to privatize ATC was “one of his top priorities” in his 2017 budget. And, for the first time, legislation (H.R. 2997) privatizing the ATC made it out of committee.

The discussion of ATC privatization is nothing new. Since the 1980s, several countries have privatized the management and funding of their respective ATC services. And over …

Federal Accident Investigations: Civil Litigation Viewpoint, Jill Dahlmann Rosa

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

While aviation accident investigations have come a long way from the days when they were completely shrouded in secrecy, friction still remains between investigation and litigation. Investigations are key for identifying facts, witnesses, and areas of focus. The investigation reports, however, might be excluded from trial, and litigation experts can be excluded from trial as well if they rely solely on investigation findings without conducting their own analysis. Although the federal government spends money and effort investigating accidents, the reports are not completed with evidentiary admissibility in mind. Courts are increasingly concerned by double hearsay and other evidentiary problems that …

Pioneering The Right To Breastfeed At 35,000 Feet: Workplace Accommodations For Lactating Employees In The Airline Industry, Brooke L. Hauglid

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Make Airlines Great Again: Why Bankruptcy Went From A Dirty Word To A Strategy, And A Proposal To Bring It Back, Klayton Sweitzer Hiland

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Here Comes The Boom: Reevaluating The Merits Of Faa Prohibition On Civil Supersonic Flight, Jonathan Petree

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Welcome To The Jungle: The Application Of Foreign Law In Aircraft Accident Litigation, Bryan S. David

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

Ordinarily, all legally significant aspects pertaining to a lawsuit emanate from a single state (usually the state where the lawsuit was filed), and the court assigned to the lawsuit decides the case based strictly upon the laws of that state. However, by its very nature, aircraft accident litigation often arises from factual scenarios involving people and aircraft emanating from multiple states and even multiple nations. And those scenarios often raise questions regarding which law will apply. The body of law known alternatively as “conflict of laws” or “choice of laws” was specially designed to answer those questions.

However, over the …

Minimum International Norms For Managing Space Traffic, Space Debris, And Near Earth Object Impacts, Paul B. Larsen

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Antitrust Immunity For Joint Ventures Among Alliance Airlines, Fred Lazar

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

This article addresses four fundamental questions:

1. If joint ventures and, particularly, metal-neutral joint ventures produce significant benefits for consumers, then why not grant them antitrust immunity while subjecting them to periodic reviews that ensure benefits continue to materialize and exceed the potential costs of lessening competition?

2. Alternatively, why not grant antitrust immunity to a joint venture with a time limit and subject it to another review on whether the immunity should be extended for another fixed period of time?

3. Or, why not attach conditions other than carve-outs to any immunized joint ventures?

4. Finally, should immunity have …

Domestic Airline Mergers And Defining The Relevant Market: From Cities To Airports, Alexa Naumovich

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

In 2017, more than four billion people in the world used aviation to travel. Airlines within the United States transported 741 million passengers domestically. As passenger demand for air travel has risen astronomically, the number of airlines who serve domestic passengers has dwindled to five major U.S. airlines. This shift in the airline industry and the reduced number of domestic airlines requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust Division (Antitrust Division) to alter its analysis of airline mergers to determine their anticompetitive ramifications.

This article serves as guidance for the future of airline mergers within the United States. It argues …

Regulatory Schizophrenia: Mergers, Alliances, Metal-Neutral Joint Ventures And The Emergence Of A Global Aviation Cartel, Paul S. Dempsey

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Federal Rule 26(A)(2) Expert Witness Disclosures: Strategies For Composing And Attacking Expert Disclosures, Douglas B. Bates, Chelsea R. Stanley, James L. Burt Iii

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(A)(2) governs disclosure of expert testimony. The rule purports to create a clear delineation between experts that must provide a written report and those that do not. The rule then outlines the disclosure requirements that must be satisfied as to each type of expert. This article focuses on the implications of Rule 26(A)(2) in practice, with an emphasis on the field of aviation litigation. The article begins by discussing the general difference between non-retained experts and retained experts and the disclosure requirements associated with each. The article then progresses into a series of practice pointers …

A Cure From Rome For Montreal’S Illness: Article 5 Of The Rome I Regulation And Filling The Void In The 1999 Montreal Convention’S Regulation Of Carrier’S Liability For Personal Injury, Yehya I. Ibrahim Badr

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

An examination of the 1999 Montreal Convention shows that the drafters did not intend to lay down a comprehensive treaty that would organize a carrier’s liability for personal injury to passengers. They opted to achieve a certain level of uniformity through enacting a set of rules that tackled several key issues such as the grounds for a carrier’s liability, the available defenses, and the limits on the recoverable damages. Consequently, some unaddressed issues created a void in the Montreal Convention and were then left without a clear remedy. In this article, a distinction is made between two types of voids: …

Unmaking A National Space Legislation For India: Indigenizing Space Law Through The “Organic Science” Of The Indian Space Program, S. G. Sreejith

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

War And (Labor) Peace: How The Ninth Circuit Changed The Rules Of Engagement For Service Providers And Organized Labor, Klayton Sweitzer Hiland

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Navigating The Federal Sentencing Guidelines: Considerations Of Equitable Impact After United States V. Trinidad, Jonathan Petree

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Tax Reform Up In The Air: Redefining The Test For Qualification Of An Air Carrier For Sales Tax Exemption, Daniel W. Sepulveda

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Airport Security Screeners: In Your Face And Above The Law, Luke Strieber

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.

Presuming Patent Inventorship Without Further Examination: A Double-Edged Sword For Aerospace Companies, Jake Winslett

Journal of Air Law and Commerce

No abstract provided.