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The Legal Framework For Space Projects In Europe: Aspects Of Applicable Law And Dispute Resolution, Frans G. Von Der Dunk

Space, Cyber, and Telecommunications Law Program: Faculty Publications

Space projects in Europe take place in a complicated environment involving many public, private and intergovernmental actors, where the participation of the private sector, as independent space operators or as sub-contractors to others, is usually subsumed under the label of 'the space industry,' producing hardware, software and services to be used in outer space, in support of space activities, or using products, data or information generated with the help of space activities.

Such private, semi-private and quasi-private actors use contracts as the main mechanism to protect their interests, the freedom to contract within the rule oflaw being the paramount overarching …