The principle that countries should not claim extraterrestrial territory can still create a legal gap. On Earth, a company normally operates under the law of the state where an incident occurs. A settlement run by a conglomerate could instead have its headquarters, majority shareholders, and state-linked owner in different countries while possessing no local sovereign jurisdiction. Even an ordinary injury claim would then raise the question of whom to sue and under which law. A colony needs legal infrastructure alongside vehicles, habitats, and supply chains.
Notable Point · 29:30-31:19
No territorial claim can mean no obvious local law
A multinational settlement exposes the jurisdiction problem created when no state may claim the territory in which an injury and compensation dispute occur.