Environmental & Energy Law Program |
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This issue of the newsletter introduces new faculty and staff in our program, summarizes recent program events, and spotlights several faculty and student achievements and activities. It also previews our full slate of exciting upcoming program events this fall.
Dean Randall Abate
Assistant Dean for Environmental Law Studies
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Dr. Kristoffer Svendsen Selected as New Assistant Dean for Energy Law |
The Environmental and Energy Law program is thrilled to welcome Dr. Kristoffer Svendsen as Assistant Dean for Energy Law. He brings experience in teaching, writing, managing programs, and in private practice. He stepped into his new role at GW Law on June 1, 2024. Dean Svendsen has lectured extensively and has published books and journal articles in the field of energy law. To learn more about Dean Svendsen, his experience in the field of energy law, and his plans for the Energy Law program, visit the GW Point Source, the GW Environmental and Energy Law program's blog.
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Dean Randall Abate Delivers Lecture Series Hosted by Green University in Tashkent |
Randall Abate, Assistant Dean for Environmental Law Studies, delivered a lecture series on international environmental law and climate governance at the Central Asian University of Environmental and Climate Change Studies (“Green University”) in Tashkent, Uzbekistan from May 20-30, 2024. Visit the GW Point Source to learn more.
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Professor Caroline Cecot Joins Program as Visiting Associate Professor of Environmental Law |
The Environmental and Energy Law program is delighted to welcome Caroline Cecot as a Visiting Associate Professor for the 2024-2025 academic year. We recently caught up with Professor Cecot to learn more about her background in environmental law and related fields and hear about her plans and goals in this new role. Visit the GW Point Source to learn more.
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Rights of Nature and the Triple Planetary Crisis: Lessons Learned from Ecuador, July 17, 2024 |
Co-organized by GW Law Environmental and Energy Law Program, the Earth Law Center, and the Center for Democratic & Environmental Rights.
The webinar featured Grant Wilson, Executive Director of the Earth Law Center, who addressed the rights of nature from a global perspective; Hugo Echeverria, Ecuadorian lawyer, who discussed the rights of nature from the Ecuadorian perspective; and Constanza Prieto Figelist, Founder and Director of the Latin American Program at Earth Law Center, who spoke about the Nangaritza Forest case. Randall Abate, Assistant Dean of the Environmental Law Program, offered introductory remarks and Professor Giovanna E Gismondi served as the moderator. Translation services were provided by Fernando Muñoz, LLM in International Environmental Law from GW Law. The recording of this event is available on the GW EEL Program YouTube Channel.
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Trends and Challenges in Environmental Law, June 13, 2024 |
Co-sponsored by GW Law Environmental and Energy Law Program and the Universidad Católica de Santiago de Guayaquil.
This hybrid event explored current trends and challenges in Environmental Law in the context of the United States and the Republic of Ecuador. Dean Abate addressed the topic of climate washing litigation, which seeks to hold fossil fuel companies and other private sector entities accountable for misleading the public about their compliance with climate change regulations or goals. Fernando Muñoz Domínguez, LLM in International Environmental Law 2024 from GW, provided a comparative analysis of how US and Ecuadorian courts approach statutory interpretation of ambiguous environmental statutes. In that context, principles such as In dubio Pro Natura and the principle of environmental favorability were examined. Finally, the event included an in-person presentation at the Universidad Católica de Santiago de Guayaquil (Ecuador), where Professor Corina Navarrete analyzed the correlation between Environmental Law and Tax Law. The recording of this event is available in the GW EEL Program YouTube Channel.
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Energy Connectors Reception, Orrick, April 26, 2024 |
The Energy Law program and the Energy Connectors alumni affinity group welcomed students and faculty to its latest alumni social hour on April 26 in Washington D.C. The event was hosted and sponsored by Orrick. GW energy attorneys were joined by non-GW energy attorneys from Orrick, including Orrick’s DC Office Leader Paul Zarnowiecki, who welcomed the group. The event included a tour of the new Orrick offices and sought to continue building a strong relationship between Orrick’s energy practice and the GW Energy Law program. Orrick thanks all who attended and looks forward to welcoming members of the GW Law community at future Energy Connector events.
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Student & Alumni Spotlights |
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Monishaa Suresh, JD ’23, will be published in Volume 33:1 of the Tulane Journal of International and Comparative Law (forthcoming fall 2024) with her paper, Rivers, Rights, and Religion: Securing Legal Personhood for the Ganges River in India. The article compares the Ganges to rivers in New Zealand and Colombia and discusses how legal personhood at the national level would benefit the river and be enforced and implemented.
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Fernando Muñoz D., LLM ’24, will be published in Volume 49:1 of the William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review (forthcoming fall 2024) with his paper, The Interpretation of Environmental Statutory Ambiguity: A Comparative Analysis between Ecuador and the United States. The article presents a comparative analysis of how Ecuador and U.S. courts approach ambiguity in environmental statutes, focusing on the Indubio Pro Natura principle in Ecuador and the Chevron doctrine.
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James Crisafulli, JD ’24, will be published in Volume 59:1 of the University of San Francisco Law Review (forthcoming fall 2024) with his paper, From a Shield to a Sword: Using the Dormant Commerce Clause to Challenge State Laws Promoting Fossil Fuels. The article proposes that, to promote a healthier environment, state laws promoting fossil fuels should be challenged under the Dormant Commerce Clause, a constitutional doctrine that prohibits states from excessively burdening interstate commerce.
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Nicole Karem, JD ’24, will be published in Volume 15 of the Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental, and Innovation Law (forthcoming fall 2024) with her paper, Hitting the Brakes: State Policies Encouraging Car Use in Pennsylvania Violate the State's Environmental Rights Amendment. Her article draws on cases interpreting the scope of Pennsylvania’s ERA, other federal and state cases in the U.S. addressing environmental rights analysis, and the "Share the Road" petition from the Philippines to support her compelling and innovative analysis.
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Patrick Seroogy, 3L student, published an essay, Public Engagement in Categorical Exclusions Under NEPA, which discusses changes to public engagement and categorical exclusions in the NEPA process and what those changes mean for future NEPA litigation. Patrick's publication is available in the GW Point Source.
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James Crisafulli and Aashini Choksi won the Third Best Memorial (Brief) in the International Final Rounds of the International Environmental Moot Court Competition, held at Stetson University College of Law in Gulfport, Florida on April 10-13. Crisafulli also earned recognition as the Ninth Best Oralist in the International Final Rounds of the competition from a field of more than 50 outstanding individual oralists from all corners of the globe. Crisafulli and Choksi displayed an ideal combination of advocacy skills and professionalism that made GW Law very proud.
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James Crisafulli and Aashini Choksi delivered poster presentations at the GW Research Showcase on May 1, 2024. The Research Showcase featured approximately 50 poster presentations delivered by undergraduate, graduate, and professional students, as well as postdocs, on complex environmental challenges. Aashini Choksi's poster addressed removing lead service lines in D.C. with a focus on environmental justice to ensure that all vulnerable communities have access to clean water by 2030. James Crisafulli's poster proposed legal mechanisms to address disproportionate pollution burdens and environmental injustice in Wilmington, California. Both poster presentations were based on papers that James and Aashini had accepted for publication in prestigious law journals in 2024.
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The 2024 Miller Prize - The GW Environmental and Energy Law Program is delighted to announce that Aashini Choksi, JD ‘24, received the 2024 Charles and Kathryn Miller Environmental Law Award. The award is presented to the member of the graduating class who has demonstrated excellence in the field of environmental law. The award is named in honor of former Associate Dean for Environmental Law Studies Lee Paddock’s grandparents, who lived on a centennial farm on Lake Michigan, and is the place where he first developed his interest in the environment. Aashini had four articles that she prepared as a student accepted for publication, was the runner-up with her teammate in the North American Regional Rounds of the International Environmental Moot Court Competition, and won Third Best Memorial in the International Final Rounds of that competition. She also interned with the White House Council of Environmental Quality and the Wilderness Society.
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GW Environmental Law Fellows Panel
September 19, 2024
GW Law's Jacob Burns Moot Court Room
3:45 – 5:45 pm
This panel showcases four exceptional GW Environmental Law Fellows who have pursued careers in domestic and international environmental law. The panelists will share highlights of their work in their current positions and deliver presentations on recent or work-in-progress scholarship on climate and energy justice and environmental human rights issues. This event will be in-person at GW Law's Burns Moot Court Room as well as streamed online via Zoom.
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Book Talk with Professor David Spence | Climate of Contempt: How to Rescue the U.S. Energy Transition from Voter Partisanship
September 23, 2024
GW Law's Jacob Burns Moot Court Room
Join the Energy Law program for a book talk with Professor David B. Spence on his latest book, Climate of Contempt: How to Rescue the U.S. Energy Transition from Voter Partisanship. Climate of Contempt offers a voter-centric, bottom-up explanation of national climate and energy politics, one that pinpoints bitter partisanship as the key impediment to transitioning to a net zero carbon future. This event will be in-person at GW Law's Burns Moot Court Room and streamed online via Zoom.
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Professor Catherine Banet lecture on recent developments in EU energy law
September 26, 2024
Bracewell
The event provides a comprehensive analysis of the recent legislative updates in the EU energy sector, exploring their implications for member states, industry stakeholders, and the broader European energy market. Professor Banet will highlight the key legal and policy developments, offering a nuanced understanding of how current changes will shape the future of energy governance in the EU.
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Professor Keith Hall lecture on carbon capture and storage (CCS)
October 10, 2024
GW Law
Professor Hall will discuss the legal frameworks of CCS, policy considerations, and technological advancements surrounding CCS, a critical technology in the fight against climate change. This event promises to be an invaluable opportunity for policymakers, industry experts, and environmental advocates to engage with cutting-edge developments in CCS and its role in achieving global carbon reduction targets.
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The Third Annual J.B. and Maurice C. Shapiro Distinguished Lecture on Global Climate Change and Energy Law
October 29, 2024
GW Law's Jacob Burns Moot Court Room
3:30 – 5:00 pm
This year's lecture features Dr. Beatriz Martinez Romera, Associate Professor of Environmental and Climate Change Law and Head of the Research Center for Climate Change Law and Governance (CLIMA) at the University of Copenhagen Faculty of Law. Her lecture on integrating obligations under international environmental law in the regulation of international marine transport greenhouse gas emissions will be followed by Q&A session with our in-person and online audiences.
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The Environmental & Energy Law faculty and staff have been working hard publishing articles and textbooks, participating in panels, and delivering presentations on various topics. A summary of select faculty publications and presentations appears below. The full list of scholarship can be found on our Faculty Publications Page.
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Dean Randall Abate co-authored an article on environmental justice considerations for coastal climate migration in Florida and Alaska, which is scheduled for publication in the September 2024 issue of the Environmental Law Reporter (Environmental Law Institute). He also delivered in-person and online lectures and panel presentations on climate washing, climate migration, global environmental governance, and parallels and synergies between animal and environmental law at events hosted in Milan and Vercelli, Italy; Tashkent, Uzbekistan; Dhaka, Bangladesh; Salvador, Brazil; Denver, Colorado; and GW Law. He was interviewed by UzReport World on climate governance and global environmental issues, and quoted in KYPCNB on ways to improve the effectiveness of global environmental protection and reduce the impacts of climate change.
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Professor Robert Glicksman updated and published his book, Public Natural Resources Law, Release # 50 (2d ed. Thomson Reuters). He also authored an article, The Disintegration of Administrative Adjudicatory Enforcement Authority, Widener Commonwealth L. Rev. (forthcoming). His presentations included “Standing Based on Informational Injury: A Paradoxical Tale,” at the GW Law faculty in April, “Administrative Adjudication on the Chopping Block in Jarkesy v. SEC” at the Widener Commonwealth Law Review Symposium on “Judging and Administrative Law” (online) in April, and “Reorganizing Government: Structural Choices in Functional Governance Design,” at the conference on “Regulatory Governance in a Changing World.” This latter conference was sponsored by the Inaugural Conference of the International Association on Regulation and Governance and took place in Philadelphia, PA, in June. His presentations were complemented by multiple media mentions in leading publications including LAW360 (Keith Goldberg), BloombergLaw (Daniel Moore & Shayna Greene), and LAW.COM (Maydeen Merino).
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Professor Emily Hammond appeared in various media interviews with CNN, Scientific American, Science, Planetizen, and The Hill. They coauthored an article, What are “best and “adequate”? The litigation outlook for EPA’s proposed carbon rules for power plants, published in the Threads. In addition, Professor Hammond participated as a panelist in a discussion on “Environmental Justice and Participation in Energy Market Decision making,” organized by the National Environmental Justice Conference and Training Program in April 2024, and “The Regulatory Process from the Regulator’s Perspective,” organized by AHRI Policy Symposium in May 2024.
- Professor Robin L. Juni published an article, When the Math Matters: Use of P-Values in Pharmaceutical Decisions, in the Vermont Law Review (forthcoming 2024).
- Dean Kristoffer Svendsen co-edited and co-authored an upcoming book, Research Handbook on Offshore Wind Law, which will be published by Edward Elgar in its Research Handbook series on Energy Law in 2024/2025.
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Stay connected with us on social media. Check our program web page for more news and updates.
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