Turner Environmental Law Clinic


The Turner Environmental Law Clinic provides pro bono legal assistance to individuals, community groups and nonprofit organizations seeking to protect and restore the natural environment for the benefit of the public. Through its work, the clinic offers students an intense, hands-on introduction to environmental law and regulatory practice.

The Turner Clinic features live-client representation in complex civil litigation settings, while also providing transactional and advocacy opportunities. Student attorneys work closely with co-counsel, expert witnesses, municipal leaders and some of the region’s and nation’s most prominent environmental organizations to protect the environment. Students litigate before state and federal administrative and judicial tribunals, draft legislation, and prepare and critique land-use documents, natural resource protection plans and environmental reports.

Under supervision from Clinic Director, Mindy Goldstein, and Adjunct Professor of Practice, Rick Horder, Turner Clinic students manage each matter from the initial prospective client meeting to completion.

Our Work

The clinic's work touches upon some of the most difficult and cutting-edge environmental issues of the day: sustainable energy and climate change, urban agriculture and farming, water resource protection, conservation and land use, and citizen enforcement and participation in regulatory and judicial proceedings. For more information about our work, please click here. 

What Our Students Have to Say

"The Turner Clinic has been the most practical legal experience I’ve had during law school. We are able to take the information learned in the classroom, apply it to real cases and draft documents that are filed in court or presented to the clinic’s clients."
—Sarah Morse 11L

"I can’t stress how invaluable it was for me to get such hands-on mentoring and insight at the clinic yet be given the freedom to craft my arguments and implement them in a real case. Working with, and against, licensed attorneys gave me not just the motivation to learn and develop my legal skill set, it gave me the confidence to know that I can be a successful advocate."
—Matt Shechtman 11L

"During my two semesters at the Turner Clinic, I helped litigate environmental cases before federal agencies, drafted petitions and appeals, engaged with clients, and helped to formulate legal strategies. This experience was qualitatively different from anything else that law school provided, and it gave me a huge head start when I started practicing law."
—Jeff Kerr 10L

 

Upcoming Event

The Turner Environmental Law Clinic is proud to be a co-sponsor of the 2013 National Brownfields Conference. For more information or to register for the conference, please click on the logo below.