## 3 Legal Challenges Posed by Mega-Constellations to Existing International Space Law Regime
### The Issue of Space Traffic Management
#### 3.3.3 Flags of Convenience under the Space Traffic Management Issue  
The registration of a foreign-owned vessel under easy and advantageous conditions for the entity registering the vessel is known as a \"flag of convenience\" in maritime practice and law [63]. This practice is usually for the purpose of reducing operating costs and avoiding \"burdensome regulations\". In 2009, when measured in terms of total tonnage, numerous worldwide merchant ships were registered under flags of convenience, with the Panamanian, Liberian, and Marshall Islands flags accounting for nearly 40 percent of the global fleet [64]. Because of the lax regulations, poor or minimal oversight, and poor record keeping in the flag of convenience states, this practice has been criticized for creating an environment for criminal activities, poor working conditions, failed environmental protection, and safety concerns [65], among others. Examples include the Torrey canyon situation in 1968, the Amoco Cadiz situation in 1978, the Exxon Valdez situation in 1989, the Scandinavian star situation in 1990, and the sea empress situation in 1996 [66]. The Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010--which occurred while flying the Marshall Islands' flag of convenience--was dubbed the greatest environmental disaster in American history and is a more recent occurrence. As with maritime law, space objects operating under the Outer Space Law (Treaty) are governed by the laws of the country of registration [9; 14; 67], because the launching state is the state of registry. As one of the Outer Space Treaty's objectives, this discourages space actors from engaging in excessively risky activities [68]. Because of this, the registering state cum launching state is responsible and liable for activities pertaining to the registered activities [68]. The relevant Articles 6 and 7 of the Outer Space Treaty confer responsibility and liability to state parties for their activities in outer space, including activities carried out by national non-governmental entities [69]. The Liability Convention [12] is more detailed and supplements Article 7 of the Outer Space Treaty regarding the determination of liability for damage caused by space objects [70]. It integrates a framework under Article 9 to settle liability claims. It states that \"a claim for compensation for damage must be presented to a launching State through a diplomatic channel or through the Secretary General of the United Nations\" [12]. Moreover, a claims commission may be established by either party involved if they do not reach a settlement within one year of notification. The claims commission therefore decides the merits of the claim and determines the amount of compensation payable, if any. The decision of the commission is final and binding upon the agreement of the parties; otherwise, the commission should render a final and recommendatory award, which the parties should consider in good faith [12]. This shows that the Liability Convention is deficient, since its decision can only be final and binding if the parties are in agreement, thus diminishing the decision to the status of an advisory award in all other cases [71]. Secondly, only one case has been filed under the Liability Convention, namely the Cosmos case [72], which, in the end, was settled diplomatically. This does not show much regard for said convention in terms of dispute settlement. International law is consensual by nature, meaning that states are not obligated to adhere to laws that they have not clearly consent to. Therefore, the Outer Space Treaty and the Registration Convention provide a framework whereby national laws can be applied to space objects based on state registry [67; 68; 73], which is similar to the flags of convenience under the law of the sea. Nonetheless, some states may be motivated to relax their regulations, especially since enforcement mechanisms are not robust, enabling flags of convenience scenarios where space actors choose a launching state with lax standards.