Summary

Space tort and patent protection are becoming more and more urgent legal issues, in light of rapidly developing space technology and commercialization of space activities. China’s space industry and activities have witnessed rapid progress recently, yet the development of China’s national space law system lags far behind China’s other achievements in space. Existing space laws in China have not expressly stipulated space tort and patent protection. Thus, addressing these issues has to resort to the relevant rules in other national laws or legal documents to recognize and confirm the doctrines of space tort liability, mitigation or exemption of liability, assignment and protection of space patents, etc. Therefore, the two main tasks or topics for the Chinese space law community are defining the applicability of the general rules and establishing a systematic national space law regime. The national space law regime will need to address the uncertainties, loopholes, and insufficiencies in the existing legal system regarding space tort and space patent protection. National tribunals, researchers, lawmakers, and policymakers will require references and guidance for dealing with space tort and patent protection. Meanwhile, international academia and practitioners need to better understand Chinese laws related to space activities, in order to facilitate international cooperation and the settlement of disputes.