law schools

Saving the Planet, One Case at a Time

These 50 law school clinics are doing vital work on environmental issues across the country.

Law school clinics are where the proverbial rubber meets the road. They  introduce students to the realities of lawyering. Often, they are a law school’s most important form of public service.  Environmental law clinics have blossomed across the country. Today’s post provides a directory to the clinics. There are several sites that promise comprehensive lists …

CONTINUE READING

A Guide to Environmental Law Centers

There are twenty and the list is growing.

Many law schools consider public service a key part of their missions. More than most people appreciate, they play an important role in public policy in areas as diverse as intellectual property, criminal justice, and environmental law. Research centers are an increasingly common institutional setting for that work. With that in mind, I’ve tried to …

CONTINUE READING

Another Supply Chain Issue

Less exotic than rare earths but also needed: energy law teachers.

To make the energy transition work, we’ll need a lot more energy lawyers. That means a lot of energy law profs to teach them — many more than we have today.  Law schools are waking up to the need to hire in the area. So if you’re thinking of law teaching, it could be worthwhile …

CONTINUE READING

Dear 1L . . .

You couldn’t have picked a more critical time to come to law school, for the country, the planet, and our future.

Dear 1L: You’ve gotten to law school at a crucial time for the future of the planet. The good news is that you’re arriving at a pivotal point when your work as a lawyer can make a big difference. The bad news is that we have a dwindling amount of time to get the situation …

CONTINUE READING

Environmental Law in US Law Schools

There are strong programs in schools up and down the pecking order.

Although I’ve taught environmental law for a long time, my knowledge of the programs at U.S. law schools is pretty hit or miss. In the hope of finding out more,  I did a quick survey of U.S. schools.  The results make it clear that environmental law has a foothold at law schools of all kinds. …

CONTINUE READING

Climate Change in the Law School Curriculum

What role will the subject play in the curriculum of the future?

Someone asked me recently what I thought law schools should be teaching about climate change.  Naturally, my first reaction is that everyone everywhere needs to put climate change at the top of their agenda. As usually happens, when I got past that gut reaction, things got more complicated. There are many important societal issues that …

CONTINUE READING

Environmental Law Centers — Western version

It’s not just on the coasts where law schools works on sustainability.

This is part of an occasional series on the work of environmental law centers. My goal in this series is to highlight one of the ways that law schools work for the public interest, not just on the coasts but throughout the country. Here, I’ll focus on the Interior West — the plains, mountains, and …

CONTINUE READING

Defending the Environment, Deep in the Heart of Dixie

It’s not hospitable territory for environmental work, but some law schools are still trying.

National environmental groups tend not to devote many resources to the Deep South.  State governments and often courts are barren ground for environmental arguments.  And.the local activist community is also thin.  Law schools are also fewer in number than in the Northeast or Pacific Coasts.  So what’s going on in those schools in the environmental …

CONTINUE READING

Law Schools and the Environment: East Coast Version

Environmental law centers aren’t just a California thing. .

Readers of this blog probably have some sense of what the environmental law centers at UCLA and here at Berkeley are doing. There are too many environmental law centers to do a a comprehensive nationwide survey, and trying to pick a top-10 list would be completely subjective. To keep this post manageable, I’ll only discuss …

CONTINUE READING

What Are Law Schools Doing About Climate Change?

Quite a bit, as it turns out.

Law schools produce volumes of scholarship on climate change and energy issues.  They also train the next generation of leaders in environmental law.  Those are the traditional roles, but many law schools are also engaging more directly with those issues.  I’ve put together a sample of some current programs, which illustrate the depth and diversity …

CONTINUE READING

Join Our Mailing List

Climate policy is changing rapidly. Stay in the loop with expert analysis via email Monday - Friday.

TRENDING