Howard Professor AJ Link Teaches The First Space Law Course Offered At An HBCU Law School

AJ Link’s discovery of the field occurred during his time as a 1L student at George Washington Law in Washington, D.C. — one of the only schools to offer a space law class — per The Dig. He went on to earn his Master of Laws (LLM) in space law from the University of Mississippi. The achievement made him “one of the handful of Black people in the world with that degree.”

As a void still remains in access to studying space law, Link is spearheading change. Link is an adjunct professor at the Howard University School of Law (HUSL) and teaches the first space law class offered at a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) law school, according to The Dig. What’s more, HUSL stands as one of the handful of law schools in the nation to offer both a space law course and a club.

“As part of our space law class, students not only learn the black letter law of international space treaties and US space policy, they also get to meet space law professionals from NASA, US Space Force, The American Society of International Law, private space companies, law firms with specialized practice areas for space, and more,” Link explained.

The bigger picture for Link is for HUSL to lead a movement toward there being more Black space lawyers and legal professionals as well as more in the space community as a whole.

“Howard has the chance to be the premier space law institution in the country and should not miss the opportunity to grow its space law class offering into a full space law program that can prepare its students and graduates to fully explain that yes– space law is a real thing,” Link said.