When it comes to environmental law, UH Mānoa program soars
In August 2006, the American Bar Association awarded the Environmental Law Program at the William S. Richardson School of Law at UH Mānoa the Award for Distinguished Achievement in Environmental Law and Policy. Since 2000, the ABA’s Standing Committee on the Environment annually has honored one environmental law program – though not always a school – from a select field. In taking the honor UH bested programs with much greater name recognition, size and funding.
That’s par for the course. Though it is among the smallest such programs in the country, the ELP has an outsized impact both in Hawai‘i and internationally. The program’s international and national teams have repeatedly performed well at annual “moot court” competitions, garnering a total of eight awards with one overall first-place finish for the national team in 1999. (A moot court is a simulated court proceeding which demonstrates skills at the appellate court level.) The ELP is also ranked in the top 25 Environmental Law Programs by the national news magazine, US News and World Report.
ELP graduates have altered the landscape in both public and private realms. They have counseled clients on water pollution, beach access and critical habitat designations. Faculty members, with student help, regularly litigate important pro bono cases, such as an August 2006 victory by ELP Adjunct Professor Lea Hong for three Native Hawaiian groups on the Hawai‘i Island seeking enhanced government regulations over construction of astronomical observatories on Mauna Kea. Such active student involvement in the litigation of land use and development laws has had an outsized impact on Hawai‘i’s delicate ecosystems and social fabric. “We play an important role in achieving environmental progress in Hawai‘i and the way we do that is by trying very deliberately to create a cohort of professionals who become an integral part of Hawai‘i’s economy and legal sectors,” Says ELP Director Denise Antolini.
Founded in 1988, the ELP graduates about a dozen students annually. In addition to meeting Juris Doctorate requirements, students take classes in international environment law, hazardous waste law, legal aspects of water resources control, Native Hawaiian rights, and land-use management and control, among others. The ELP requires 60 hours of pro bono work and focuses on community outreach. Students may donate services at a drop-in legal clinic, clean up streams, or volunteer at an environmental organization. The ELP’s student-run Web site allows online public access to environmental law information including federal, state and local decisions by courts and agencies, in addition to state and county ordinances.
Jeffrey Prieto, a trial attorney for the U.S. Justice Department and this year’s committee chair, says that the committee was impressed with the “vibrancy” and scope of the program. Says Prieto, “We thought highly of the program’s accomplishments but we also really liked the fact that the program is out in the community and has identified projects that are important to the community. Clearly they are training a cadre of attorneys that are going to have a real impact on Hawai‘i both today and in the future.”
Photo: Sam Kim