Law Student Resources

Law Students Climate Challenge

The ABA and EPA are sponsoring the Law Office Climate Challenge. This program is designed to encourage law offices to take steps to conserve energy and resources, as well as reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants. The Law Office Climate Challenge is now applicable to law schools.

Participating law schools will receive recognition from the ABA and those that join the EPA programs will receive recognition from EPA, in accordance with each programs' requirements. Specifically, a law school that adopts best practices for office paper management, or that meets the minimum requirements for participation in at least one of the EPA programs, qualifies for recognition as a Law Office Climate Challenge Partner. A law school that achieves a higher level of participation in at least one of the EPA programs qualifies as a Law Office Climate Challenge Leader. All qualifying law schools will be recognized. For those schools that participate in EPA programs, the amounts of greenhouse gas emissions avoided by their actions will be posted on the ABA's Law Office Climate Challenge Website.

This is a great program for your school’s environmental law society to promote to your school administrators. Specifically, a school stands to gain public recognition of its green achievement, at the same time that it can promote its accomplishment in its marketing materials.

More details, including enrollment forms and rules, are available here: http://www.abanet.org/environ/climatechallenge/overview.shtml

Environmental Career Paths for Young Lawyers and Law Students

Career Series Teleconference Program:
Thursday, January 10, 2008 (Part 1)
Free Podcast/MP3 Download (1:09:34 | 96 kbs | 47.7 MB)
Thursday, January 17, 2008 (Part 2)
Free Podcast/MP3 Download (1:09:12 | 96 kbs | 47.5 MB)

12:00 noon – 1:15 p.m. Eastern Time

Two free downloadable podcasts are available that provide insight on career paths from a variety of leaders in environmental, energy and natural resources law. Lawyers from private practice, state regulatory agencies, government agencies, corporations, and associations provide practical guidance on various career options and achieving your career goals. (more).

Welcome

Welcome, to the Law Student Programs Committee, Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources web page. It is an honor to welcome you to the Section, and we encourage you to take advantage of the many opportunities that are available to young professionals such as yourself. The Law Student Programs Committee has developed a long term plan that is designed to....[more]

Student Loans and LRAP

Please share with us your personal story of how your law school debt is currently impacting your life and how it affects your future career choices. Are you interested in working in public interest or the public sector? And if so, do your loans affect the possibility of you working in these industries? Your story will aid in our efforts to advocate on behalf of both federal and state LRAP's in order to enable law school graduates to enter into public service careers. Your story may be shared with the appropriate members of Congress. Complete Our Questionnaire

Law Student Volunteer Opportunities

There are several ways that law students can work as volunteers at the Section programs. In exchange, the Section offers opportunities for students to participate free of charge in education programs taking place at the meeting. For additional information, please call (312) 988-5577.

Endangered Environmental Laws Writing Competition

The Environmental Law Institute, the American Bar Association’s Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources (ABA-SEER), and the National Association of Environmental Law Societies (NAELS) announce the third annual “Endangered Environmental Laws” Student Writing Competition. The Constitution has long been interpreted by the courts and understood by most Americans to support comprehensive environmental protections. However, arguments targeting the constitutional legitimacy of environmental laws are gaining new traction in the federal courts. To inform the debate, we invite law students to submit papers exploring current issues of constitutional environmental law.

AWARD: $2000 cash prize and offer of publication in ELI’s Environmental Law Reporter (ELR).
TOPIC: Any topic addressing recent developments or trends in U.S. environmental law that have a significant constitutional or “federalism” component.
DEADLINE: Entries must be received no later than 5:00 PM ET on April 4, 2008.
For more information, visit: http://www2.eli.org/writingcontest.htm.

Law Student Programs Writing Competition

The Law Student Program Division of the ABA's Section of Environment, Energy and Resources is pleased to announce that the following schools/classes have been selected as winners of the 2008 Law Student Programs Writing Competition:

Thomas Jefferson School of Law -- Environmental Law Writing Seminar
William Mitchell School of Law -- Environmental Regulation - Policy Issues
University Michigan School of Law -- Environmental Justice

Each class' professor will submit the five best class papers to the Committee, which will then publish up to nine of the papers on this web page. The 2008 papers will be posted at the end of the Spring 2008 semester. 2007 and 2006 winners are posted below.

2007 Law Student Writing Competition

Papers on wind energy, sovereignty in the Northwest Passage, and beach replenishment

Papers on invasive species in the Great Lakes, transboundary trash trade, and the North American Free Trade Agreement

Papers on urban coastal wetlands, offshore wind energy, and fisheries conservation

2006 Law Student Writing Competition

Papers on the Commission on Environmental Cooperation, risks from mercury emissions, and incentives for Brownfields redevelopment

Papers on the use of waves for energy production, efforts to save the Everglades, and salvage of marine animals

We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Studyin’: Don’t Waste Effort; Goof Off Before Your Bar Exam
ABA Journal - May 19, 2006

Minority Fellowship Interns

2007 Minority Fellowship Interns
Twenty-four law students from eight different states were selected to participate in the 2007 Fellowships in Environmental Law Program. [more]

2006 Minority Fellowship Interns
Twenty-five law students from eight different states were selected to participate in the 2006 Minority Fellowships in Environmental Law Program. [more]

Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources