Haley Varnadoe grew up in southeast Ohio and felt a strong pull towards the legal field. Marietta, her hometown felt the consequences of chemical contamination. Dark WatersThe 2019 film, titled ‘The Killing Fields of DuPont Manufacturing Facility’, depicts the lives of people who were afflicted by deadly diseases at the facility.
Varnadoe explained that I was always interested in environmental justice as a child. Although I made some mistakes along the way, I always returned to my desire to become a lawyer.
Varnado’s interest for environmental law led her Texas A&M Universitys School of Law to offer an opportunity for her to learn more. Energies, natural resources and environmental systems program. Students can explore issues related to water pollution, land use, and the oil-and-gas industry through their coursework.
Texas A&M is the only law school in Texas that offers an environmental law clinic. Sara ThorntonGabriel Eckstein, who also teaches the class. Eckstein is an expert in international water policy and law. He serves as the director of Texas A&Ms Environmental Law Program.
Ecksteins capstone class allowed students to create legal recommendations for real clients. This was the inspiration for the clinic.
Eckstein explained that capstone courses at law schools are rare and that it would be more beneficial to students if they had the opportunity to work in a clinic. Eckstein stated that while law schools are excellent at teaching case law and theory, graduates need to have the ability to present their knowledge in courtroom situations.
Eckstein stated that my capstone was a clinic without the skills component. We were not really teaching them how to speak to clients. We saw the real value in going an extra mile and saying: Let’s try harder and teach them: How do I speak to the client? How do you interview?
Eckstein met with Luz E. Herrera as associate dean to set up the clinic and contacted Thornton, an Austin-based water lawyer at Lloyd Gosselink Rochell & Townsend about teaching the course.
Thornton is also one Eckstein’s former students. He was a Texas Techs law professor. Ecksteins plan to combine classroom experience with the daily experiences of advising clients convinced Thornton, who taught her Texas A&M law class in spring 2021 to say: Sign me on!
Thornton stated that it was a great opportunity to me to develop as an attorney and because it helps me improve my skills with the people I work with. It’s not a one-sided learning experience for students. It is a learning experience that the professors get a lot from.
Members of the clinic concentrate on legal issues like compliance with environmental regulations. Each spring semester, they take on one client. The class can have five to eight students. It does not deal with litigation, but cannot discuss details of its work because of attorney-client privilege.
Thornton said that the lessons from the course went beyond the legal issues students studied.
It is not easy to understand the stress involved in dealing with clients when you are just learning coursework. Not only was there a lot of attention on managing time, but also in terms establishing work-life balance. This is especially important post-pandemic.
Eckstein stated that environmental law is complex and difficult to fit into a 12-week clinic. Students will need to meet clients, conduct research, arrange meetings for experts, and conduct site visits.
Varnadoe was part of a different clinic in the last year. The environmental program was completely different for Varnadoe. Varnadoe was used working with many clients on specific issues, and wrapping up cases in a short time.
Varnadoe, who is graduating next month, said that being able cover a lot of ground for one consistent client was very beneficial. It was great fun to develop teamwork skills and collaborate between our various schedules, and have client meetings every day over the course 12 weeks.
Eckstein stated that all types of clients are welcome to the clinic, including those from corporations and government agencies.
He said that they were not a tree hugging clinic. We strive to be at the center of the road. We are open to working with the public and private sectors, as well as municipalities, because we don’t have to achieve a specific outcome unless the client desires it. Every case is different.
Eckstein who? Bolivian water rights were arguedThis month, the International Court of Justice asked students to take on international environmental law if they can find a topic that fits within the semester.
Most importantly, he wants students leave the course feeling ready to take on their first law firm job.
They can tell people when they go to interviews or out in the real world that they are not just book-smart, but they actually worked on this case. Eckstein stated that these types of legal analyses, this type of legal research, were done for a real-life project. These are the skills they’ll need to acquire on the job. Now, the employer will likely say: Come on board.
