Reviews the federal statutory and regulatory scheme, including Title VII, the Age Discrimination and Employment Act, and other federal civil rights statutes, as well as the New York state scheme, and current developments. Employment Regulation 3 credits Covers rights and obligations of employees and employers. Major topics include statutory and judicial minimum standards for terms and conditions of employment, workers' compensation, and employee retirement benefits. Environmental Law 3 credits Focuses on developing general analytical framework for understanding environmental law, including development of common law, with emphasis on statutory and regulatory techniques for control of pollution. 3 credits Focuses on ways in which environmental law affects commercial operations and transactions of various types, including purchase, sale and financing of real property and business assets, insurance coverage for environmental liabilities, criminal liability of corporate officers, directors and employees, the effect of bankruptcy on environmental liabilities, and financial accounting reporting requirements for environmental liabilities.
Primary objective is to explore interplay between environmental and commercial law.
Students draft sections of commercial documents and write a short paper on a topic approved by the instructor. Environmental Law Practice and Procedure 3 credits Focus on currently pending legislative or regulatory proposals in New York state involving environmental issues. One or two proposals are identified per semester. Similarities and differences between Clean Air Act and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act are noted. Detailed consideration of various types of regulatory enforcement, including civil actions, administrative and criminal enforcement, and citizen suits.