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Students in the Environmental Clinic work with underserved communities throughout Texas to advocate for solutions to today’s pressing environmental problems, including environmental injustice and climate change. Recent clinic projects have included:
- enforcement of environmental laws in federal court,
- permitting and rulemaking proceedings before courts and administrative agencies,
- civil rights complaints,
- nuisance actions,
- community education,
- pollution monitoring, and
- environmental policy research.
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Our clients are typically low-income individuals and underserved neighborhood groups that are exposed to pollution or other environmental hazards, such as flooding. We also represent environmental nonprofit organizations and local governments. We frequently work with the Texas legal aid organizations (e.g., Texas RioGrande Legal Aid or Lone Star Legal Aid) or with national environmental law firms (e.g., Earthjustice or the National Environmental Law Center).
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Six to eight new students and up to three advanced (repeat) students are in the clinic each semester. Students work in teams of two.
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You are expected to devote approximately 12 hours a week to your casework, which includes a weekly meeting with your teammate and supervisor. Students also participate in a weekly two-hour seminar covering topics including federal environmental statutes, environmental justice, administrative law practice, and use of the law as part of campaigns for environmental protection and justice. In addition, students must accumulate 10 hours over the course of the semester attending public environmental meetings, hearings, and/or oral arguments.
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Students in the Clinic learn to think creatively about how to use the law and work with communities to protect and improve environmental quality and public health. Practical skills learned and honed in the Environmental Clinic include:
- environmental and administrative law research,
- written and oral advocacy
- factual investigation and analysis,
- legal drafting and litigation support,
- client counseling/community education,
- advocacy before regulatory agencies, and
- ethical and professional legal practice.