The Moon Treaty and the Law of the Sea

This Comment explores the connections between the law of the sea and the evolving law of outer space. The author suggests that the questions of resource exploitation are common to both areas and will remain the subject of heated international debate until a practical method of resource management is adopted. The author explains that the law of the sea experience illustrates the difficulties that are encountered when legal norms trail behind technological advances and that a wiser framework would be to establish the basic legal framework in advance of technological developments. The author concludes that, if this were done, the law would determine the direction of technology, rather than technological might and marketplace interests determining the direction of the law