The Environmental and Natural Resources Law Clinic at Vermont Law School opened its doors to students and clients in August 2003 with a generous grant from the Henry Luce Foundation. The clinic offers Vermont Law School students the exceptional opportunity to become “apprentice lawyers” and to apply what they learn in the classroom to real problems on behalf of real clients in cases with real consequences.
Our clients are state, regional and national organizations and community groups facing significant environmental problems in need of competent, creative legal assistance. The clinic selects cases based on a number of criteria, three of which are most important: first, the case must provide a rich learning experience – that is, a case that allows students to take charge of key elements, to develop the facts and law, and to advise and represent clients in a variety of legal settings; second, the case should present an opportunity to serve clients who would not otherwise be able to afford legal representation; and third, the case must afford an opportunity to resolve environmental problems, protect public health, and conserve important natural resources.
