Navigating Switzerland’s New Space Law: Legal Frameworks for a Growing Industry

This legislation aims to enhance Switzerland’s appeal in the space sector by establishing a clear legal framework for satellite operations, reflecting the growing significance of space activities for the nation. The webinar will feature leading experts on space law. Experts will provide an in-depth analysis of the draft law, discussing its implications for national space activities, licensing, supervision, and liability issues. More about the speakers below.

• Moderated by Dr. Rodrigo Polanco
• Professor Dr. Lesley Jane Smith
• Catherine Kropf
• Dr. Ingo Baumann
• Dr. Merve Erdem Burger
• Riccardo Loschi

This event is essential for professionals and stakeholders in the space industry, legal experts, policymakers, and anyone interested in the future of space activities in Switzerland. Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with leading authorities on the subject and gain a comprehensive understanding of the proposed legislation.

Webinar Details:

Date: Wednesday, April 30th, 2025

Time: 12:30 – 14:00 hrs.

Platform: Online via Zoom

Register in advance for this meeting

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Stay ahead in the evolving space sector by understanding the legal frameworks shaping its future. We look forward to your participation.

More about the speakers

Professor Dr. Lesley Jane Smith

Professor Dr. Lesley Jane Smith is an internationally recognized expert in space law, European economic law, and international commercial law. A law graduate from the University of Edinburgh and a qualified solicitor, she has practiced in the UK, France, Germany, and at the EU level. She is a partner at Weber-Steinhaus & Smith in Bremen and a professor at Leuphana University Lüneburg, with guest teaching roles across Europe and at the International Space University. Her expertise spans liability for commercial space activities, space debris regulation, industrial procurement, GNSS, and intellectual property in outer space. She has contributed extensively to major legal publications, including the Cologne Commentary on Space Law and more recently, the Routledge Handbook on Commercial Space Law (2024). She has held leadership roles in the International Institute of Space Law, the European Centre of Space Law, and Women in Aerospace Europe. With decades of academic and legal experience, she remains a leading voice in shaping international space law and policy.

Catherine Kropf

Catherine Kropf is Deputy Head of the Swiss Space Office at the State Secretariat for Education Research and Innovation SERI of the Swiss Confederation.

The Swiss Space Office is responsible for the preparation and implementation of space policy in Switzerland. Catherine Kropf is head of the Space Policy & Support Unit and responsible for Swiss space policy and national space legislation, currently drafting the first Swiss Space Act. She manages the Swiss budget for the European Space Agency ESA, as well as education and communication measures related to space. Catherine Kropf is a Swiss Delegate to the ESA Council and to the ESA Administrative and Finance Committee.

Catherine Kropf obtained her Master of Law (MLaw) and Executive Master of Public Administration (Executive MPA Unibe) degrees from the University of Bern, where she was also engaged professionally at the Institute of Public Law and the Institute of European and International Economic Law. Prior to joining the Swiss Space Office in 2021, Catherine Kropf was engaged in the Federal Office of Justice, in charge of European Affairs as Deputy Head of the European Law Unit and serving as Personal Advisor to the Office’s Director.

Dr. Ingo Baumann

Dr. Ingo Baumann is a founding partner of BHO Legal, a boutique technology law firm based in Cologne, Germany. He specializes in national, European, and international high-technology projects, mostly in the space industry. His clients include leading stakeholders such as the European Commission, the European Space Agency, the German Space Agency, large satellite operators, SMEs, and NewSpace start-ups. Dr. Baumann studied law in Münster and Cologne. He received his PhD from the famous Cologne Institute for Air and Space Law under Prof. Dr. Hobe on the international law of satellite communications.

From 2001 to 2007, Dr. Baumann was an in-house lawyer at the German Aerospace Center (DLR). He was then head of DLR’s Galileo Programme Office and administrative CEO of the DLR Gesellschaft für Raumfahrtanwendungen mbH, an affiliate of DLR for the establishment and operations of the German Galileo Control Center.

Dr Baumann is a member of the International Institute of Space Law (IISL) and the European Centre for Space Law (ECSL). He acts as a mentor for space start-ups within SpaceFounders, the French Starburst BLAST, and other accelerators and incubators. He chairs the legal/regulatory working group of the BDI NewSpace Initiative, and organizes yearly legal sessions or workshops at the Munich NewSpace Summit, the Munich Satellite Navigation Summit, or Space Tech Expo Bremen.

Dr. Merve Erdem Burger

Dr. Merve Erdem Burger has recently completed her postdoctoral research at the Chair of Public International Law, Faculty of Law, University of Neuchâtel. Her research focused on the implementation of international space law by states and lessons for emerging space countries. Prior to joining UNINE, Merve Erdem Burger worked as a research assistant at the Chair of International Law, Faculty of Law, Ankara University, and received her M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from the Graduate School of Social Sciences of the same university.

She is a co-founder of the Swiss Space Law Forum, a special interest group of the Swiss Society of International Law, and organizes the Forum’s annual conferences and smaller events on contemporary space law issues. She is also a member of the International Institute of Space Law and a board member of the Space Exploration Society from Türkiye and the Global SNSF Network.

Riccardo Loschi

Riccardo Loschi is a Senior Associate at LALIVE, where he represents clients operating in various sectors, including space and technology, in international arbitration and cross-border litigation proceedings. He also advises companies and governments on international investment law, regulatory issues, and national security matters. Riccardo lectures on Space Law at the World Trade Institute and serves on the board of the Space Arbitration Association. In this role, he participates in public consultations on national space laws, regularly speaks at conferences, and publishes articles on space law, international disputes, and regulatory issues. Riccardo holds a law degree from Bocconi Law School, an LL.M. from Columbia Law School, and has attended post-graduate courses on space law at McGill University, Juan Carlos University in Madrid, and the University of Leicester.

Moderated by Dr. Rodrigo Polanco

Rodrigo Polanco is a senior lecturer, researcher, and academic coordinator of Master Programmes at the World Trade Institute (WTI), University of Bern, and a Legal Adviser for Spanish and Portuguese-speaking jurisdictions at the Swiss Institute of Comparative Law. In addition, he is a lecturer at the University of Luzern and a visiting professor at the University of Chile, where he also is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Economic Law (Revista de Derecho Económico).

Rodrigo holds a Bachelor and a Master of Laws from Universidad de Chile, an LL.M. in International Legal Studies from New York University and a PhD in Law from the University of Bern.

He has published extensively as an author and editor in leading international academic publishers and international journals on investment, trade, tax and environmental law. He is co-founder of the Electronic Database of Investment Treaties (EDIT). His areas of expertise cover investment law, trade law, environmental law and air and space law.