Proceedings of the Workshop - United Nations Office for Outer ...

“In the event of damage being caused elsewhere than on the surface of theEarth to a space object of one launching State or to persons or property onboard such a space object by a space object of another launching State, thelatter shall be liable only if the damage is due to its fault or the fault ofpersons for whom it is responsible”.It is unclear at first glance what is meant by “another launching State” in Article III.However, considering the context of the provision as a whole, it is reasonable to assume that theappropriate meaning is “a launching State other than the launching State of the first object”. Inother words, Article III has application only where the damage caused is international and notdomestic in nature.Article IV (1) states:In the event of damage being caused elsewhere than on the surface of theEarth to a space object of one launching State or to persons or property onboard such a space object by a space object of another launching State, andof damage thereby being caused to a third State or to its natural or juridicalpersons, the first two States shall be jointly and severally liable to the thirdState, to the extent indicated by the following:1. if the damage has been caused to the third State on the surface of theEarth or to aircraft in flight, their liability to the third State shall beabsolute;2. if the damage has been caused to a space object of the third State or topersons or property on board that space object elsewhere than on thesurface of the Earth, their liability to the third State shall be based onthe fault of either of the first two States or on the fault of persons forwhom either is responsible.This provision deals with the situation where a collision between two space objects inouter space and then causes damage to a third State, either on the surface of the Earth or in outerspace. It should be noted that the provision deals only with the primary damage being caused inouter space and not if it is caused on the surface of the Earth. The liability of the two States is tobe approportioned on the basis of the extent to which each one of them was at fault or, if theextent of fault cannot be established, approportioned equally between them. 58The Liability Convention does not apply to damage caused by a space object of alaunching State to nationals of that launching State and to:“Foreign nationals during such time as they are participating in the operationof that space object from the time of its launching or at any stage thereafteruntil its descent, or during such time as they are in the immediate vicinity ofa planned launching or recovery area as the result of an invitation by thatlaunching State”. 59If the provision is to be interpreted with its prima facie meaning, the reference to thatlaunching State instead of a launching State appears to indicate that, in the case of damage caused58 Liability Convention, Article IV (2).59 Ibid., Article VII.