About

Philippe Clerc is a distinguished and a well-respected expert in the field of space law, having worked in the somewhat niche market for over 25 years. Currently acting as the head of legal affairs for the space agency of the French government, Clerc has had a career that is defined by being at the leading edge of a developing industry. He began his career in 1989 as a legal and tax expert at CNES and by 1993 he had been made responsible for relations with the European Union under CNES’ Directorate of International. Clerc took a year out to study in the first Masters of Space Studies program, returning to CNES to work under the General Directorate on strategy, defining the framework for the company’s new partnership policy. Between the years of 1998 and 2003, Clerc was seconded to the Space Department at the Ministry of Research, representing them at the board of the French Frequency Authority, he was appointed coordinator of the Espace & Société workshops. It was during his time at the Ministry that Clerc completed the draft report on the enactment of a national space law where coordinated consultations between departments, industries and academics to form the French Space Operation Act (which came into play in June 2008). The Act had a major impact on CNES’ strategy, along with influence on Clerc’s decision to divide the legal department into two services: contracts and intellectual property rights; and corporate legal services at the national and international level. He has moulded his department into two views, one that is a ‘keeper of legal conformity of CNES activities’, and the second which serves as the innovative function designing new legal instruments. Clerc’s efforts have created a formalised cooperation framework between academic and research entities, while allowing CNES to form deep relations with the European Space Agency and the EU. Clerc has become used to operating in an area of law that is often undefined in an industry that is constantly moving the goal posts. As a result of his expertise and knowledge, CNES is now globally recognised as a trusted entity for Space Law making and lobbying.