May the Laws Be with You This Star Wars Day

May the 4th Be With You.png

2021 marks 10 years since Star Wars Day had its first organized celebration in Toronto on May 4, 2011, although sticklers might argue its actual 10th Anniversary will occur in 2023, as “In late 2012, Disney purchased Lucasfilm and has officially observed the holiday at Disneyland and Walt Disney World ever since.” (To the non-geeks reading this, May 4 was chosen for Star Wars Day as a “pun on the catchphrase ‘May the Force be with you’ as ‘May the Fourth be with you.’”)

Instead of a recitation and summary of the “Top 5 Star Wars Verdicts and Settlements,” this blog post focuses on the legal aspects of Star Wars in two ways: (1) the application of American law to the Star Wars galaxy and (2) an overview of laws within the Star Wars galaxy.

Application of American Law

Star Wars Galaxy Laws

Where to begin? According to an article published in Slaw, Canada’s online legal magazine, “Star Wars laws can be categorized into general Codes and regulations‎, Galactic Alliance and Galactic Republic laws and acts‎, Imperial laws and acts‎, New Republic laws and acts‎, and Sith Empire laws and acts‎. There are even obscure legal systems which reflect natural law principles such as Ugorian Divine Law.”

The full round-up of Star Wars laws can be found here, within Wookiepedia: The Star Wars Wiki.

Real Space Laws

If you are interested in learning more about the actual laws of space for planet Earth, check out the Harris County Robert W. Hainsworth Law Library’s digital exhibit on Space Law, available here.

Additional Resources