Climate Change
The Clean Air Act and Greenhouse Gases: Full Employment Act for Lawyers
For several years now, large law firms have sought work related to climate change, though prior to President Obama’s election the work was relatively thin. Sure there were challenges to California’s legislation to regulate greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from cars; defenses to claims under the National Environmental Policy Act and California Environmental Quality Act; and …
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CONTINUE READINGEvaluating the claim that future environmental regulations have already made California the nation’s worst place to do business
I’m reasonably sure that chiefexecutive.net’s annual listing of “Best/Worst States for Business“ isn’t most people’s go-to source for information comparing various states’ business climates. Nonetheless, the website’s annual survey just came out, and the Sacramento Bee is covering it as a story (with a promise of more coverage to come). California — as usual — …
CONTINUE READINGThe New Public Trust Climate Cases
Per the New York Times this morning, a group of environmental organizations called Our Children’s Trust has filed a lawsuit against the state of California, arguing for protection of the atmosphere under the public trust doctrine (about which I blogged a couple of days ago). A few preliminary reactions after having read the complaint quickly: …
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CONTINUE READINGAnother victim of the budget deal: key US greenhouse gas data?
It was my wonderful law school professor Gary Blasi who first introduced me to the idea that “what gets measured, gets done.” I’m thinking of him and reading this news in some mixture of awe (at our seeming collective ability to ignore problems) and anger (at same): The final fiscal year (FY) 2011 budget provides $95.4 …
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CONTINUE READINGHuman Rights and Climate Change
The connection between climate change and human rights is beginning to get fuller attention. The Cancun Agreements (FCCC/AWGLCA/2010/L.7, paras 93-4) call for submissions on “a forum on the impact of the implementation of response measures.” On behalf of Berkeley’s International Human Rights Law Clinic, Zoe Loftus-Farren and Cáitrín McKiernan have offered a submission, suggesting that …
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CONTINUE READINGWhat Do Environmental Law Scholars Write About?
Some of our readers who aren’t in law schools probably wonder what environmental law professors actually do. (Some of our readers who are in law schools might be wondering the same thing!). I thought it might be helpful to provide a sample of recent scholarship. Here are recent lists of working papers from SSRN.com, which …
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CONTINUE READINGSolicitor General Katyal Flunks Supreme Court History
At least he did at the oral argument in Connecticut v. AEP yesterday: [Lawyer for the state plaintiffs Barbara] Underwood, pressed to cite past court cases that might show this particular lawsuit could work in court, had no close parallels to rely upon. Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., had pressed her to come up …
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CONTINUE READINGSaving Public Nuisance
I agree with Rick’s take on the oral argument in Connecticut v. AEP — in fact, so much so that I predicted it three years ago! But if the Supreme Court overturns the Second Circuit on the viability of a federal common law claim, that actually makes the viability of state common law claims stronger. …
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CONTINUE READINGDamage Control for the States: Predicting the Outcome in AEP v. Connecticut
Yesterday I previewed Tuesday’s oral arguments in the U.S. Supreme Court’s American Electric Power v. Connecticut case, and two of my Legal Planet colleagues have already posted comments on certain aspects of those arguments. But let me cast discretion to the wind and predict the outcome of the case. Actually, it’s not that difficult a …
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CONTINUE READINGConnecticut v. AEP: The Judicial Power of the Purse
That’s not my phrase: it’s Jerry Frug’s. But it applies here. Rhead reports that in the Connecticut v. AEP argument, Justice Breyer, setting up one of his classic hypotheticals, wanted to know why a judge should not impose a $20-a-ton carbon tax as a judicial remedy. (Answer: because he can’t.) It’s not clear to me …
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