Organisation of the German NPOC
The Institute of Air and Space Law of the University of Cologne, the only institution of that kind in Germany, has been acting as the NPOC in Germany for ECSL since 1989. It was felt in Germany, that no new specific legal structure of the NPOC should be created, in view of the fact that already two bodies exist in Germany for practitioners and academics of Space Law: the Committee on Air and Space Law of the German Society of Aeronautics and Astronautics (DGLR) and the Committee on Air and Space Law of the German Association for International Law (German Branch of the International Law Association).
As, for many years already, both Committees have a common annual meeting chaired by Professor Dr. Karl Heinz Böckstiegel, the Director of the Cologne Institute, it was felt that German ECSL activities could be most effective if they were included in the activities of the already existing bodies. The organisational issues of the NPOC are carried out by the Cologne Institute and no additional membership fee is charged from the German members of the ECSL.
Annual Meeting
The annual meetings take place in the Institute of Air and Space Law
and in the Senate Hall of the University of Cologne. According to usual
practice, prominent practitioners and academics give status reports on
the various branches of aviation and space activities and of air and space
law during the respective year. At the beginning of the meeting a presentation
on a subject of common interest is given by a renowned expert. In 1994
this keynote address at the annual meeting was given by Winfried Thoma,
Head of ESA Contracts Department, on Experience gathered through the Contract
Practice of the European Space Agency. The 1995 annual meeting will take
place on 7 June 1995.
International Colloquium to celebrate the 70th Anniversary of the Institute of Air and Space Law of Cologne University
The major event in Germany in the field of space law in 1995 will be an International Colloquium to celebrate 70 years of the Institute of Air and Space Law and 20 years of the Chair for International Business Law of the University of Cologne. The Colloquium will take place from 7 to 9 June. Prominent lawyers from various parts of the world will discuss prospects on future developments in air and space law and international business law. To ensure that the views of the younger generation are presented, 'Young panelists', including ECSL Members, will share their views with the distinguished experts.
Cologne Database on Space Law
In 1987 it was decided to establish the first computerised database
on space law at the Institute of Air and Space Law of the University of
Cologne. With the financial support of government sources, the necessary
hard- and software was obtained and the database is now available for users
of the Institute in Cologne at the Institute's library.
The database lists all space-relevant material at the library of the Cologne Institute (currently more than 8000 entries). The entries consist of monographs, articles, and legal instruments and can be retrieved by bibliographical data is in close cooperation with ECSL's online database ESALEX and its date can be accessed using ESALEX.
Publications and Research
ECSL Members have been and are involved in the following projects of
the Institute of Air and Space Law:
The first Handbook of Space Law in the German language (Cologne, 890 pages).
Continued research on environmental aspects of space activities, following up to the international colloquium organised by the Cologne Institute some years ago. This research led to the elaboration of an International Draft Instrument on Space Debris by the Space Law Committee (chaired by Prof. Böckstiegel) of the International Law Association with the assistance of Prof. Rex (Chairman of the ESA Space Debris Study Group).
In follow-up to the International Colloquium on Manned Space Flight organised by the Institute in 1992 and a common research project of the Institute of State and Law of the former USSR, the Space Law Center of the University of Mississippi, and the Cologne Institute which led to an International Draft Instrument on Manned Spaceflight, research on legal problems of international manned spaceflight is continued.
Liability and waivers of liability regarding space activities. Settlement of disputes regarding space activities (this again as a follow-up to an international colloquium of the Cologne Institute organised in the past).
Information on the Cologne Institute and the German NPOC on Internet
At the time of the publication of this biennial report, information
on the Institute of Air and Space Law and the German NPOC of ECSL will
be available on the World-Wide Web. An entry point can be found at:
http://www.uni.koeln.de/Jur-fak/index.html.
To obtain the correct URL of the home page of the Cologne Institute,
send E-mail to:
aolo1@rrz.uni.koeln.de (Knut Focke).
Address
Institute of Air and Space Law University of Cologne
Albertus Magnus Platz
D-50923 Cologne
Phone: (49) 221 470 2337
Fax: (49) 221 470 4968I
ECSL Biennial Report 1993-1994 (BR-104).