This class is designed to expose students to climate change litigation and regulation, and attendant legal tactics and strategies addressing climate change, including the inter-related issues of environmental justice and clean energy. The goal of the seminar is for students to learn about, critique, and understand the developing legal tools to address these critical and interrelated issues. Students will also develop insights into pertinent procedural issues, non-legal and quasi legal factors that influence the outcome of such legal efforts, as well as legal challenges being brought to thwart or slow action to address climate change. Broadly, after an initial introduction, the seminar will be structured to focus primarily on litigation targeting climate change and cases that integrate justice issues. Clean energy development permeates these issues.

Greater class time will be devoted to litigation, but the course will also cover current and proposed legislation and regulation, and other executive and policy actions. Students will be expected to probe and understand not only the cases, legislation, and regulations, but issues that bear on the success of such approaches, including appreciating the roles of procedural matters, the parties involved in pursuing or defending against cases, legislation, and regulations, as well as the interests at play and the resources and strategies that are available and may impact the outcome of the efforts. Students will be asked to assess the concept of “success” with regard to application of these various legal tools. They will also develop an understanding of the use of available data and expert testimony that are integral to the outcomes of legal actions.