Friday, February 26, 2010
9:00 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. Welcome & Introductions
Leslie Carothers
Environmental Law Institute
Richard Frank
Center for Law, Energy & the Environment, Berkeley Law
Peter Byrne
Georgetown Law
9:15 am – 9:45 am Opening Keynote Presentation
Richard J. Lazarus
Georgetown University Law Center
9:45 am – 11:15 am Panel #1: Citizen Standing/Access to Courts
Panelists will assess what the current state of Article III standing means for environmental plaintiffs, with emphasis on the implications of the Supreme Court’s rulings in Massachusetts v. EPA (2007) and Summers v. Earth Island Institute (2009). The discussion may also cover standing jurisprudence in “increased likelihood of harm” cases, particularly as that case law has evolved in administrative law cases before the DC Circuit.
Moderator
Holly D. Doremus
Faculty Co-Director, Center for Law, Energy & the Environment, UC Berkeley School of Law
Panelists
Bradford C. Mank
University of Cincinnati College of Law
David Bookbinder
Senior Attorney, Chief Climate Counsel, Sierra Club
Honorable Edwin S. Kneedler
Deputy U.S. Solicitor General
11:15 am – 11:30 am Morning Break
11:30 am – 1:00 pm Panel #2: Scope of Congressional Authority to Protect the Environment
The Commerce Clause has long been the primary constitutional hook for federal environmental protections. This panel will examine how far Congress’s authority over interstate commerce can be understood to reach in light of contemporary Supreme Court decisions, and what this means for challenges to current environmental laws-and for Congressional efforts to enact new ones. Panelists will also explore other constitutional grounds that may be available to Congress for environmental protection (e.g., the Treaty Power, the Property Clause, and the Spending Clause).
Moderator
Bruce Myers
Senior Attorney, Environmental Law Institute
Panelists
William W. Buzbee
Emory Law School
Wm. Robert Irvin
Senior Vice President for Conservation Programs
Defenders of Wildlife
Michael W. Evans
Partner, K&L Gates LLP
1:00 pm – 2:15 pm Lunch & Lunchtime Keynote, Q&A
Honorable Peter W. Hall
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
2:15 pm – 3:45 pm Panel #3: Constitutional Status of State/Regional Climate Initiatives
The absence of federal action on climate change has led not only to the emergence of new state and regional frameworks, but also to lawsuits by states and public interest groups seeking to leverage existing federal and state laws against industry and regulators. At the same time, those opposing state and regional climate change initiatives have invoked constitutional principles in an effort to halt those efforts. This panel will cover the range of constitutional doctrines that either have been or soon will be deployed on this legal landscape: e.g., political question doctrine, foreign policy preemption, the Compact Clause, and the “dormant” Commerce Clause.
Moderator
Vicki Arroyo
Georgetown Law
Panelists
Ray Ludwiszewski
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP
Kenneth P. Alex
Office of the Attorney General, State of California
Doug Kendall
Constitutional Accountability Center
3:45 pm – 4:00 pm Afternoon Break
4:00 pm – 5:30 pm Panel #4: New & Emerging Constitutional Theories and the Future of Environmental Protection
The final panel will consider the future of constitutional environmental law. As a new President and Congress promise responses to the climate and energy crises, is the Constitution likely to be understood as a source of positive authority for new solutions-or more as a means of challenging state and federal actions that are seen as going too far? What lies over the horizon for regulators, for environmental groups, and for lawyers representing the regulated community?
Moderator
James R. May
Widener Law School
Panelists
Doug Kysar
Yale Law School
Dan Farber
Berkeley Law
Robert L. Glicksman
The George Washington University Law School
5:30 pm Closing Remarks & Adjournment
Richard Frank
Center for Law, Energy & the Environment, UC Berkeley School of Law
Leslie Carothers
Environmental Law Institute
