Acknowledgments List of Abbreviations Introduction 1 US Law Trinity: Common Law, Statutory Law, and Contractual Law2 Utility of the Inquiry 3Structure of the Work 1 The Risks of Commercial Human Spaceflight 1 Market Size and Loss Exposure 2 The Risks of Spaceflight to SFPs and Crewmembers.9 3 Conclusion 2 A Review of Liability Exposure and Ways to Manage It 1 The Existence of Liability (Otherwise Known as the Existence of Legally Attributed Accountability) 2 Parties: Who are the Plaintiffs? Who are the Defendants? 3 Defenses: Affirmative and Otherwise 4 Assumption of the Risk, Whatever That Means 5 Conclusion3 Federal Legislation and Commercial Space 1 Commercial Space Licensing 2 Maximum Probable Loss 3 Federal Informed Consent 4 Federal Jurisdiction 5 Federal Cross-Waivers 6 What Does "Gross Negligence" Mean? 7 Conclusion 4 Federal Jurisprudence and Commercial Space 1 Understanding the Boundaries of Federal Jurisdiction 2 The Federal Jurisdictional Gap 3 Federal Preemption of State Statutes 4 The Nature of Federal Jurisdiction 5 Federal Contractual Choice-of-Law 6 Conclusion 5 Federal Choice-of-Law for Disputes Outside Federal Jurisdiction 1 Federal Supremacy v. State Sovereignty 2 Federal Law of Torts 3 Federal Choice-of-law Analyses: State v. Federal, State v. State 4 Interpretation of Federal Waivers under Federal Law 5 Conclusion 6 Exculpatory Agreements in Space Friendly States 1 The Complicated World of "Express" Assumption of the Risk 2 Waiver-Enforcement for Claims Brought by Heirs: General Overview 3 Avoiding Claims by Heirs via Statute: Following the Letter of the Law 4 Waiver-Enforcement between the Injured Party and the Operator Directly: a State-by-State Analysis 5 Conclusion 7 Express Assumption of Risk in Non-Space-Friendly States 1 Alaska 2 Arkansas 3 Connecticut 4 Georgia 5 Hawai''i 6 Idaho 7 Illinois 8 Kentucky 9 Michigan 10 Minnesota 11 Mississippi 12 Missouri 13 Nebraska 14 New Jersey 15 New York 16 North Dakota 17 Ohio 18 Oregon 19 Pennsylvania 20 South Carolina 21 Utah 22 Vermont 23 Wyoming 24 Conclusion 8 Statutes Limiting Liability for Space Activities 1 Spaceflight Entity 2 Participants or SFPs 3 Spaceflight Activities 4 The Degree of Culpability Immunized 5 Statutory Requirements of the Space Activities Statutes 6 Conclusion 9 Statutes Limiting Liability in Space Friendly States 1 Arizona 2 California 3 Colorado 4 Florida 5 New Mexico 6 Oklahoma 7 Texas 8 Virginia 9 Conclusion 10 Implied Assumption of Risk in Space Friendly States 1 Defenses in Tort: Contributory Negligence, Assumption of the Risk and Comparative Negligence 2 Assumption of the Risk''s Vexed Jurisprudence 3 State Law''s Continued Relevance 4 Conclusion 11 Medical Malpractice Suits against a Commercial Space Physician and the CHSFOperator by Co-employees and/or SFPS 1 Sources of Liability for CHSF Operators Employing CHSFPhysicians 2 The Sources of Duty between the SFP/Crewmembers and CHSFPhysicians: a Question of Scope 3 Physicians and CHSFOperators: Why have a Physician at All? 4 Crew and SFPS--Different Roles, Different Statuses 5 SFPs and CHSFPhysicians 6 The Physician as an "Agent" of the Commercial Spaceflight Operator 7 Crewmembers and the CHSFPhysicians: Co-employee Immunity 8 Conclusion Conclusion 1 The Phases of Spaceflight 2 Navigating the Fragmented Landscape of US Jurisprudence 3 The Federal Framework: From Federal Legislation to Federal Common Law 4 Express Assumption of the Risk: Drafting is Key! 5 Space Activities Statutes: What is Left after the Dust Settles? 6 Muddling Through the Defense of Implied Assumption of the Risk 7 What''s Up Doc? Aerospace Medicine Physicians within the Spaceflight Framework 8 Closing Remarks Bibliography Appendix Index.