Curriculum Guide · Courses

Professor Matthew Bogoshian

J.D. Seminar 1006 | 2 credit hours

This course will examine the critical nature of environmental law enforcement in meeting the intended purposes of America’s environmental laws. Since these laws have little meaning if not adequately enforced, this course will introduce students to the administrative, civil and criminal enforcement mechanisms traditionally relied upon to ensure compliance with key laws such as the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act. Students will examine the decentralized nature of environmental enforcement implementation to understand the advantages and challenges such a system presents to meeting the objectives under the law. Students will examine other enforcement mechanisms to include citizen suits and NEPA and be challenged to consider the emerging role of transparency and market based mechanisms to achieve greater compliance. Relying on his practical experience, the instructor will present students with real-world problems to help them understand the challenges and opportunities in achieving compliance with existing environmental laws. The instructor will provide insights into specific areas such as criminal investigations, business and defense counsel viewpoints and perspectives from enforcement officials.

Prerequisite: Environmental Law.