Research Papers by Lawrence Roberts
As with many other aspects of the GATT regime, the process by which disputes among the Contractin... more As with many other aspects of the GATT regime, the process by which disputes among the Contracting Parties to the GATT are resolved has changed markedly as the demands on the GATT have grown. Early procedures relied heavily on negotiation among states. Over time, those parties seeking legalistic mechanisms as a means of enhancing effectiveness have challenged the diplomatic approach. To a great extent, the implementation of legalist principles has had a salutary effect on the regime. Dispute resolution procedures have become more formal, independent and benefit from increased legitimacy. Even so, the ever-increasing demands of international trade on the system have made dispute resolution a continuing challenge for the international community. The process remains bedeviled by delays, problematic enforcement of decisions, and unbalanced access to the process that undermines legitimacy and inadequate promotion of GATT policy objectives.
This article will examine the problems that currently hinder adjudication procedures and the prospect for improving the dispute resolution process through a number of structural changes including further emphasis on formal procedures and stringent enforcement mechanisms that establish incentives designed to conform national interests more closely with the needs of the international community as a whole.
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Over the past forty years, communications and broadcasting via geostationary satellite systems ... more Over the past forty years, communications and broadcasting via geostationary satellite systems have become integral and valued parts of the global information infrastructure. International communications and data distribution from orbit, however, have been hobbled by regulatory mechanisms administered under the auspices of the International Telecommunication Union. The author examines the current regime and the problems confronting the industry, discusses potential solutions, and proposes that the present method for allocating frequencies and orbital positions for geostationary satellite networks can be substantially enhanced through an auction process and the addition of select regulatory changes.
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Effective environmental regulation can facilitate not merely protection of celestial bodies, but ... more Effective environmental regulation can facilitate not merely protection of celestial bodies, but also promote reasonable development. The uncertainty occasioned by the current environmental norms for outer space represents a real risk to those parties wishing to engage in any preliminary commercial efforts. Absent a clear set of guidelines, governments and corporations might waste billions in research and development of unsuitable technologies, cause unnecessary harm to the environments of solar system bodies, or shy away from development altogether.
This article explores the proposition that an international legal structure which establishes a cogent, private property system, promotes an integrated liability standard for private as well as public entities, makes use of existing civil judicial mechanisms and permits limited use of familiar regulatory approaches can greatly mitigate or eliminate the flaws engendered by the existing legal regime.
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The purpose of this article is to re-examine the law of STNG from an international legal perspect... more The purpose of this article is to re-examine the law of STNG from an international legal perspective. In an effort to deal with interstellar legal questions consistently, STNG has transported international law into the 24th century. While there are a score of television series portraying domestic law in operation,' STNG is the only example of episodic television that regularly deals with principles of international law, albeit in a futuristic, interstellar context. Unique among television series in this respect, STNG can be used as a pedagogical aid to international law teaching, just as the original Star Trek series has been used to teach ethics at the undergraduate level.'
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Part I of this Article discusses the background and current status of the problem of space debris... more Part I of this Article discusses the background and current status of the problem of space debris. Part II discusses the law of the marketplace relevant to the space debris problem. Part III examines how the Outer Space Agreements regulate the space environment and treat the issue of liability. Part IV examines the applicability of terrestrial international environmental law to outer space. Part V considers how market internalization mech- anisms can address the space debris problem. This Article con- cludes that because market dysfunction has contributed to the space debris problem, flexible approaches to market internaliza- tion can best prevent further degradation of the space environ- ment.
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Essays by Lawrence Roberts
You've decided that going on safari is a bore, exploring the Antarctic sounds much too cold, you ... more You've decided that going on safari is a bore, exploring the Antarctic sounds much too cold, you did Mount Everest last year, and if you have to see Mr. Eiffel's tower one more time you'll scream. Spending some of your hard-earned cash on a trip into space sounds like the ideal way to get away from it all.
Not so fast, my intrepid friend. Signing on for those seven fun-filled days and six exotic nights in low Earth orbit or beyond might be more difficult than you think. Presently, there are enough legal pitfalls to force the entire space tourism industry onto a slow growth path, or worse yet keep a whole pack of future Clarence Darrows in tailored suits for decades.
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Decades ago, the U.N. Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) crafted The Outer Sp... more Decades ago, the U.N. Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) crafted The Outer Space Treaty with the hope that in pursuing future exploration, mankind would avoid the pitfalls that befell exploring civilizations in previous ages.
The Outer Space Treaty has, by most accounts, succeeded in its objective. Unfortunately, the very same standards which sought to prevent political opportunism in space have produced a system which creates, from a market perspective, the worst of all possible worlds.
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A discussion of costs and benefits of proposed legislation purporting to prohibit advertising in ... more A discussion of costs and benefits of proposed legislation purporting to prohibit advertising in outer space.
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Western civilization is the rule of law. From medicine to mining, from banking to baseball, how w... more Western civilization is the rule of law. From medicine to mining, from banking to baseball, how we work, play and live is defined by the rules we set for ourselves. We depend today on both international and domestic law to provide stability, to allocate rights and interests among competing parties and, on good days, to enhance the workings of our economy. It therefore follows that a legal regimen will play an essential part in the future development of a commercial space industry, but what will that role be?
While it is impossible to predict the course of scientific development and the impact such development will have on our society, some policy needs will remain constant. Lawmakers in the aerospace arena will undoubtedly face a number of challenges. First, to craft laws and regulations that rely upon market mechanisms to maximize the efficient allocation of industry capital as fully as possible, reduce the costs associated with regulation and discourage partisan political interference in the space sector. Second, where the market isn't up to the job, to manage the competition for limited resources in the least intrusive manner. And last, to encourage an American space industry.
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American history is replete with examples of government assistance for novel transport technologi... more American history is replete with examples of government assistance for novel transport technologies. Government supports counter the tendency of the market to grossly underestimate the potential economic value of investments in new transportation methods. Commercial space transportation incentives should be no exception.
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Opinion by Lawrence Roberts
The longstanding US government mechanisms that have, in the past, ably served the cause of explor... more The longstanding US government mechanisms that have, in the past, ably served the cause of exploration now represent impediments to the effective development of the high frontier. The nation would be better served by confining its operations to the long tern research and development and regulatory roles and allowing private enterprise to undertake the lion's share of operational duties such as launch to orbit.
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Papers by Lawrence Roberts
Boston College International and Comparative Law Review, 1992
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U. Tol. L. Rev., 1994
THE INTERSTELLAR RELATIONS OF THE FEDERATION: INTERNATIONAL LAW AND «STAR TREK. THE NEXT GENERATI... more THE INTERSTELLAR RELATIONS OF THE FEDERATION: INTERNATIONAL LAW AND «STAR TREK. THE NEXT GENERATION" Michael P Scharf* and Lawrence D. Roberts I. Introduction A recent University of Toledo Law Review article concerning the legal issues dealt with in ...
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American Business Law Journal, 2008
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Berkeley Technology Law Journal, 2000
Over the past forty years, communications and broadcasting via geostationary satellite systems ha... more Over the past forty years, communications and broadcasting via geostationary satellite systems have become integral and valued parts of the global information infrastructure. International communications and data distribution from orbit, however, have been hobbled by regulatory mechanisms administered under the auspices of the International Telecommunication Union. The author examines the current regime and the problems confronting the industry, discusses potential solutions, and proposes that the present method for allocating frequencies and orbital positions for geostationary satellite networks can be substantially enhanced through an auction process and the addition of select regulatory changes.
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Research Papers by Lawrence Roberts
This article will examine the problems that currently hinder adjudication procedures and the prospect for improving the dispute resolution process through a number of structural changes including further emphasis on formal procedures and stringent enforcement mechanisms that establish incentives designed to conform national interests more closely with the needs of the international community as a whole.
This article explores the proposition that an international legal structure which establishes a cogent, private property system, promotes an integrated liability standard for private as well as public entities, makes use of existing civil judicial mechanisms and permits limited use of familiar regulatory approaches can greatly mitigate or eliminate the flaws engendered by the existing legal regime.
Essays by Lawrence Roberts
Not so fast, my intrepid friend. Signing on for those seven fun-filled days and six exotic nights in low Earth orbit or beyond might be more difficult than you think. Presently, there are enough legal pitfalls to force the entire space tourism industry onto a slow growth path, or worse yet keep a whole pack of future Clarence Darrows in tailored suits for decades.
The Outer Space Treaty has, by most accounts, succeeded in its objective. Unfortunately, the very same standards which sought to prevent political opportunism in space have produced a system which creates, from a market perspective, the worst of all possible worlds.
While it is impossible to predict the course of scientific development and the impact such development will have on our society, some policy needs will remain constant. Lawmakers in the aerospace arena will undoubtedly face a number of challenges. First, to craft laws and regulations that rely upon market mechanisms to maximize the efficient allocation of industry capital as fully as possible, reduce the costs associated with regulation and discourage partisan political interference in the space sector. Second, where the market isn't up to the job, to manage the competition for limited resources in the least intrusive manner. And last, to encourage an American space industry.
Opinion by Lawrence Roberts
Papers by Lawrence Roberts
This article will examine the problems that currently hinder adjudication procedures and the prospect for improving the dispute resolution process through a number of structural changes including further emphasis on formal procedures and stringent enforcement mechanisms that establish incentives designed to conform national interests more closely with the needs of the international community as a whole.
This article explores the proposition that an international legal structure which establishes a cogent, private property system, promotes an integrated liability standard for private as well as public entities, makes use of existing civil judicial mechanisms and permits limited use of familiar regulatory approaches can greatly mitigate or eliminate the flaws engendered by the existing legal regime.
Not so fast, my intrepid friend. Signing on for those seven fun-filled days and six exotic nights in low Earth orbit or beyond might be more difficult than you think. Presently, there are enough legal pitfalls to force the entire space tourism industry onto a slow growth path, or worse yet keep a whole pack of future Clarence Darrows in tailored suits for decades.
The Outer Space Treaty has, by most accounts, succeeded in its objective. Unfortunately, the very same standards which sought to prevent political opportunism in space have produced a system which creates, from a market perspective, the worst of all possible worlds.
While it is impossible to predict the course of scientific development and the impact such development will have on our society, some policy needs will remain constant. Lawmakers in the aerospace arena will undoubtedly face a number of challenges. First, to craft laws and regulations that rely upon market mechanisms to maximize the efficient allocation of industry capital as fully as possible, reduce the costs associated with regulation and discourage partisan political interference in the space sector. Second, where the market isn't up to the job, to manage the competition for limited resources in the least intrusive manner. And last, to encourage an American space industry.