Understanding the rationales for environmental policy may help us to better appreciate why we have so much regulation in the first instance. The course will also examine particular areas of environmental law including the regulation of air and water pollution, toxic risk regulation, and the preservation of biodiversity. A broad set of institutional questions having to do with the role and techniques of government regulation will be raised throughout the course. Our ultimate goal, then, will be to rethink some of the more fundamental issues of the administrative state. More often than not fundamental questions about public participation, value choices, and regulatory technique are played out in judicial forums.
Law is also an appropriate mechanism for developing critical thinking skills.
Although the language and thought processes may be unfamiliar, there are no intellectual prerequisites but for your ability to read carefully and think clearly. Finally, the course will try to strike a balance between lecturing, class participation, guest speakers, and other events. Class requirements will include a major seminar paper and active class participation.