Space Law!

Space.com's blog today has a post entitled "First Space Lawyer Graduates." The University of Mississipi School of Law has awarded it's first "Space Law" certificate. The school opened the "Center for Remote Sensing, Air and Space Law" in 1999, and publishes the "Journal of Space Law," and has its own blog. The press release seems to indicate that this program is the only one of its kind, but a quick Google search shows that at least three other law schools -- George Washington, Stanford and the University of Tennessee -- also offer courses in Space Law.

According to Wikipedia, "this field of the law is still in its infancy." It is not, however, merely a theoretical area of law. In fact, the U.N. maintains an "Office for Outer Space Affairs" in Vienna.

Last year, the Lunar Land Management Society became (I assume) the first environmental group dedicated to conserving land on the moon. Their website admits that "at the moment, lunar land is not a great concern for the majority of the world," but goes on to explain that "a large percentage of human problems, since the birth of civilization, has stemmed from land ownership." Most of the site is blank, including the "rules and regulations" page, but undoubtedly lunar land use will become a serious issue in the not too distant future. On the opposite end of the spectrum, a group called "The Planetary Institute," which claims to be affiliated with the U.N. (the group does not appear to be run by attorneys but, if nothing else, they do seem to have done their homework on the subject), is presently selling deeds for acreage on Mars and the Moon. Land on either costs $29.99 for the first five acres, and $19.99 for each additional acre.