This seminar will explore how the U.S. Supreme Court has shaped the evolution of environmental law. With Congress in gridlock on most environmental issues, fierce battles are being waged in the courts on how to interpret the environmental laws. With a conservative super-majority skeptical of environmental regulation, the U.S. Supreme Court has begun to sharply narrow the reach of federal environmental law, including the Clean Air Act in West Virginia v. EPA (2022) and the Clean Water Act in Sackett v. EPA (2023). Students in this course can expect to develop enhanced skills and knowledge in five major areas: (1) Students should gain a good understanding of the profound impact the judiciary can have on the structure of federal environmental law. (2) This course also will explore how principles of constitutional law, as interpreted by the judiciary, affect the regulatory authority of Congress and the states. (3) Students should acquire a sophisticated understanding of how the Supreme Court operates. (4) Students will become familiar with various theories of statutory interpretation and how they have been affected by new doctrines, such as the “major questions” principle. (5) Students also should develop an understanding of how historical research is conducted using primary materials. Students will draft and present a short research memo describing what the papers of Justice Stevens reveal about the Court’s decision process in an environmental law case and take a short, anonymously-graded exam. Students who wish to complete their Advanced Writing Requirement on a topic related to the seminar should contact the professor for approval to register for an additional 1-credit of Independent Written Work.