Environmental Law Teachers' Perspectives on Preparing New Lawyers for Practice

Abstract

In preparation for the "Preparing Green Lawyers" sessions at the 2007 conference of the ABA Section on Environment, Energy and Resources, a group of full-time environmental law teachers in law schools around the nation reflected on law schools' preparation of environmental lawyers for law practice. This summary paper synthesizes the comments made by each of the law faculty in five major areas of focus: (1) teaching tools and curricula in environmental law education; (2) the role of interdisciplinary education in educating environmental lawyers; (3) the ways in which students' educational experiences influence their career paths; (4) the challenge of ensuring that environmental law practice includes members of underrepresented communities; and (5) collaboration between practicing lawyers and law schools. The authors and contributors hope that this synthesis will help to inform this and future discussions between practicing lawyers and environmental law teachers, and serve as a basis for new research by scholars studying legal education, in order to make legal education as relevant as possible for law students as they enter the profession.

Keywords: environmental law, education