Curriculum
Core Courses
Administrative Law (Three Hours)
A study of the legal constraints on and nature of administrative agencies. Topics include the constitutional limits on Congress’ power to delegate legislative and judicial power to agencies; procedures imposed on agency adjudication and rulemaking by the Constitution, the Administrative Procedure Act and other statutes; the scope of judicial review of agency decisions, including the methods by which courts restrict and control agency discretion; and the limitations on the availability of judicial review.
Environmental Law (Four Hours)
An exploration of the theory and policy of environmental protection. Covers all major federal environmental legislation, including NEPA, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, CERCLA, and RCRA.
Land-Use Regulation (Two Hours)
A study of land-use regulation and the available legal vehicles for pursuing constitutional, statutory, and regulatory claims in the land-use context.
Natural Resources (Three Hours)
A study of how resources such as timber, fish, minerals, forests, water, coastlands, and indigenous plants and animals are handled, regulated, used, and distributed.
Property (Four Hours)
An introduction to alternative theories of property rights. Topics include the division of property rights over time (common law estates, landlord-tenant law); concurrent ownership; private land-use controls (easements, covenants); and public land-use controls (eminent domain, zoning).
State and Local Government (Three Hours)
An explanation of the essential legal structure of state and local governments. Topics include state constitutional law; the constitutional and statutory powers of counties and municipalities; legislation; the balance of state law against local government law; the tensions between urban and rural governments; the overall scope of the police powers; and revenue authority. The course also considers special-purpose local government entities such as school districts and development authorities.
Advanced Courses and Seminars
Environmental Advocacy Workshop (Two Hours)
The Environmental Advocacy Workshop includes reading assignments, written exercises, discussions, and simulations with an emphasis on client representation. The course develops student’s abilities to function as successful environmental advocates in the context of client interviews, administrative proceedings, negotiations, and litigation. Other issues covered include environmental justice and advocating environmental protection through the legislative process.
Federalism and Devolution (Three Hours)
An exploration of law, politics, and scholarly literature that focuses on the intersection of the federalism doctrine and the “devolution revolution.” Seminar emphasis varies in relation to recent political events and student interest.
Law and Biodiversity (Three Hours)
A study of the general concept of biodiversity and its increasingly important role for science, policy, and law.
Law of International Common Spaces (Two Hours)
An examination of the international community’s management of common resources, including the law of the sea, of airspace and outer space, of polar regions, and of the global environment.
Regulatory Reform (Three Hours)
An exploration of the ongoing debate over regulatory reform, using administrative and statutory materials, as well as scholarly readings from law journals and material from other disciplines.
Transactional Environmental Law (Two Hours)
A study of the range of environmental issues that typically arise in different types of business transactions. Types of transactions studied include stock purchases, assets purchases, leases, and pure property transfers. The course concludes with a negotiation exercise based upon real-world transaction.
Enrichment Courses
Admiralty Law (Three Hours)
Alternative Dispute Resolution (Three Hours)
Complex Litigation (Three Hours)
Corporate Crime (Three Hours)
International Law (Three Hours)
Law of International Institutions (Two Hours)
Mediation (Three Hours)
Negotiation (Two Hours)
Pretrial Litigation (Four Hours)