Space Liability Convention

In 1978, the crash of the nuclear-powered Soviet satellite Kosmos 954 in Canadian territory led to the only claim filed under the convention.

[1] As of 1 January 2021, 98 States have ratified the Liability Convention, 19 have signed but not ratified and four international intergovernmental organizations (the European Space Agency, the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites, the Intersputnik International Organization of Space Communications, and the European Telecommunications Satellite Organization) have declared their acceptance of the rights and obligations provided for in the Agreement.

[2][3] States (countries) bear international responsibility for all space objects that are launched within their territory.

The convention was created to supplement existing and future national laws providing compensation to parties injured by space activities.

This means that if an individual is injured by a space object and wishes to seek compensation under the Liability Convention, the individual must arrange for his or her country to make a claim against the country that launched the space object that caused the damage.