Administrative Law

Autumn, Spring  |  Course Link for Autumn | Course Link for Spring
Law made by administrative agencies dominates the modern legal system and modern legal practice. This course examines the legal and practical foundations of the modern administrative state. Topics include rationales for delegation to administrative agencies; the legal framework (both constitutional and statutory) that governs agency decision-making; the proper role of agencies in interpreting statutory and regulatory law; and judicial review of agency action. The course will cover these topics through a combination of cases and examples drawn primarily from separation of powers doctrine; the constitutional law of due process; health, safety, and environmental policy; criminal justice; national security law; and agency use of new algorithmic governance tools.

Animals, Food, and Environment: Crises, Causes, and Solutions*(EARTHSYS 175)

Winter  |  Course Link
This course examines how human use of non-human animals in industrial animal agriculture has contributed to the leading environmental crises of our day, including climate harms, water conflicts and pollution, deforestation, biodiversity loss, environmental justice problems, and zoonotic disease risk. Consideration of each topic will start with understanding the nature and urgency of the problem, and then move to exploring solutions grounded in changing our ways of interacting with animals. The course will draw from multiple disciplines – from science to ethics to law and policy – to offer students a broad, integrative perspective on the role of animals in environmental systems and food production. Through a series of case studies and guest speakers, students will have the opportunity to engage with a diverse range of issues that lie at the intersection of environmental and animal protection. We will explore some of the tools that can be used to combat these problems, including law and policy levers, scientific and technological advancements, market-based solutions, and community-based organizing/social change movements. In addition to substantive exploration, the course will offer students the ability to connect and interact with experts working in relevant fields. Through the course, students will move beyond human-centered environmentalism and engage with the downsides of human exceptionalism in our relations with the natural world.

Clean Energy Finance

Offered in Spring  |  Course Link (forthcoming)
Description forthcoming.

Contemporary Challenges in Climate Policy and Energy Regulation

Spring  |  Course Link
This class will touch on some of the most pressing yet fraught challenges and controversies in domestic climate policy and energy regulation. Climate change presents an existential threat that will require changes in virtually every facet of life, including especially in the energy sector. Traditionally, U.S. climate law and U.S. energy law are taught as two different fields with quite different origins, histories, and goals. But given recent backsliding at the federal level, the two fields are becoming inextricably intertwined with the long-term goals of sustainability and affordability. In the class, we will first explore what is left of U.S. climate policy and where it might be headed over the next few years before turning to how state and federal regulations might fill gaps and hasten the necessary clean energy transition, especially in the electric power sector. This is neither a traditional energy law class nor a stand-alone climate policy course. Instead, we will focus on some of the most contested areas of domestic regulatory policy at the intersection of climate and energy, including: decarbonization of the transportation, residential and commercial sectors; obstacles to and innovations in the renewable energy space; tensions between local environmental protection and renewable energy development; expansion and modernization of the electric grid; system reliability and consumer affordability in the face of accelerating energy demand; the role of AI as both demand and innovation driver; and future technological advancements, among other topics.  Readings will include a mix of traditional material and other media.

Dealing with Disasters: Perspectives on Tort and Regulation

Winter  |  Course Link
We live in a time when disasters, tragically, have taken on new meaning. Natural disasters arise with great frequency and growing intensity. And responsible party disasters dominate the headlines, generating fear and a sense of disbelief. Both prospective preventive measures, and retrospective restorative efforts on behalf of victims, raise enormously difficult questions of how best to address these momentous events. This seminar will examine preventive measures and remedial relief for natural disasters, such as pandemics (COVID) wildfires, floods, and hurricanes. Similarly, we will focus on preventive and remedial relief in responsible party disasters, such as acts of terrorism, oil spills, and
release of toxic substances.

Energy Law

Winter  |  Course Link 
This course will be an introduction to U.S. energy law. The regulation of the energy industry in the United States is complex, broad and enforced by a variety of federal and state governmental entities. Further, it is continually evolving in response to global and national events, market shifts, political dynamics and priorities, and technological advances, including economic liberalization and open access policies, tightening environmental regulation and the need to transition the electric power industry and other parts of the energy industry consistent with decarbonization goals. Multiple federal and state agencies, departments and other governmental entities regulate energy development, and the ownership, control and operation of electric energy, natural gas and oil production, transmission/transportation and distribution of energy resources, including with respect to the rates, terms and conditions of wholesale and retail services, as well as energy market rules. This course will provide an introduction to energy law, regulation and policy in the United States with a focus on the electric power and natural gas industries. With respect to the electric power industry, the course will cover federal and state laws, regulations and policies regarding the generation, transmission and distribution, and wholesale and retail sales of electric energy, capacity and ancillary services. With respect to the natural gas industry, the course will cover federal and state laws, regulations, and policies as relates to the transportation, storage and distribution, and wholesale and retail sales of natural gas, with a focus on open access policies in the natural gas industry that served as the foundation for open access policies in the electric power industry. The course will also provide an overview of recent developments of importance in these industries, with a focus on the ongoing clean energy transition, especially as related to the electric power industry. The first part of the course will focus on the theory and practice of utility regulation and its evolution from common law to administrative regulation. The second part of the course will briefly cover the natural gas industry with a focus on the development of open access transportation and competitive supply beginning in the 1990s and more recent developments relating to the shale gas revolution. The third part of the course will cover the electricity industry with a focus on the development of open access transmission and competitive wholesale markets and related developments in retail markets. The fourth part of the course will cover the clean energy transition with a focus on clean energy and clean energy enabling technologies, including distributed energy technologies, products, and services, as well as efforts related to the clean energy transition and decarbonization efforts.

Environmental Law and Policy

Spring  |  Course Link 
Environmental law is critically important, endlessly fascinating, and highly intertwined with many of today’s top legal and policy challenges, including addressing legacy pollution, climate change, siting and permitting energy and other large infrastructure projects, and the sustainable management of our natural resources. This interdisciplinary, graduate-level course will provide a survey of major federal and state environmental laws and policies, including how they are structured, implemented, and enforced; how they intersect with adjacent administrative, constitutional and other statutory frameworks; how effectively they address today’s top environment challenges; and how different governmental branches, regulated industry, non-profit advocacy groups, and private citizens have shaped—and continue to shape—U.S. environmental law and policy.

Environmental Law and Policy Colloquium

Autumn, Spring  |  Course Link
This colloquium offers LLM students the opportunity to discuss cutting-edge legal topics related to, among others, the environment, natural resources management, or energy policy.

Federal Indian Law

Autumn  |  Course Link
This course will provide an overview of the field of federal Indian law. It will consider the origins and scope of tribal sovereignty as recognized under federal law, as well as current federal law on tribal criminal and civil jurisdiction. It will also explore the division of authority between tribal, federal, and state governments; federal statutory schemes governing Natives and Native nations; and constitutional issues affecting Natives. Additional current legal issues which may be covered based on class selection include Native land claims, gaming, family law, religious and cultural rights, and natural resources.

Housing Law and Policy

Winter  |  Course Link
Shelter is a basic human need and internationally recognized as a fundamental human right. Home ownership has long been a cornerstone of American culture (a critical element of the “American Dream”). Over 650,000 Americans, however, are unhoused. And rising building costs have put home ownership out of range for 60% of Americans. This seminar will look at current housing issues in the United States, with a particular emphasis on homelessness and affordability. Class sessions will include both discussion of current studies, analyses, and proposals and presentations by outside experts. Each student will write a final research paper on a current housing issue of interest to them. Elements used in grading: Class Participation, Final Paper.

International Environmental Law

Autumn  |  Course Link
This seminar offers a focused examination of the legal frameworks, institutions, and principles that govern the protection of the global environment. As environmental challenges—from climate change and biodiversity loss to global litigation on climate policy—transcend national borders, international law has become a critical field for cooperation, conflict resolution, and sustainable governance. Throughout the seminar, we will assess the effectiveness of these legal regimes and the evolving roles of state and non-state actors, including industry. The course is open to law and non-law students, and grading will be based on class participation and short written reflections.

Law and Governance in ESG Strategy

Spring  |  Course Link
ESG has gone through a maturation process, marked by scrutiny on the left and pressure on the right, with the result that companies are refocusing their efforts on ESG topics that are relevant to the business and ESG measures that are right-sized for their organizations. As companies revisit and redesign their ESG roadmaps through this new lens, legal, regulatory and governance drivers are playing a more significant role than ever before, and lawyers, both in-house attorneys and outside counsel, are being called on to oversee strategic ESG initiatives, serve as internal ESG champions, and chair management-level steering committees composed of representatives from across the enterprise. These regulatory drivers also interact in complicated and nuanced ways with voluntary standards, which despite concerted efforts towards convergence, still differ in meaningful ways. Meanwhile, commercial ESG requirements from customers or other business partners, flowed down in supplier policies and incorporated into contracts, have emerged as an extremely influential ESG driver, and for smaller companies, can often determine the contours and content of an ESG program. These developments have combined to create significant challenges for companies from an internal oversight and management perspective, as they wrestle with how to effectively advance strategic ESG objectives against the backdrop of an ever-growing patchwork of laws, regulations and stakeholder expectations. This course will explore the role of law, regulation and governance in shaping ESG strategy and the methods used by companies to manage this complexity, including with respect to climate-related matters, product sustainability claims, diversity, equity and inclusion, human rights, responsible sourcing, and sustainability and AI.

Local Government Law

Winter  |  Course Link
This course will examine the source, scope and limits of local government power. It will consider the relationship of local governments to state and federal government and of the relationship of local governments to the individuals and communities within and around them. Specific themes will include the potential of local governments to be responsive democratic communities, the potential of local governments to become isolated or exclusive enclaves, and the effect of local governments on the metropolitan political economy. The course will examine state and federal doctrine that affects local government, political/ social theory and urban planning/ development literature.

Natural Resources Law and Policy

Winter  |  Course Link
Environmental law subsumes two major sets of issues. One set of issues, which is the subject of Environmental Law & Policy (Law 2504), focuses on pollution containment (e.g., the Clean Air Act and the Toxic Substances Control Act). This course focuses on societal management of the natural world and natural resources (e.g., energy, water, and living species). Natural resource management presents extremely difficult and contentious issues of law and public policy. Major debates rage over whether farmers should do with less water in order to protect endangered fish species, how to equitably allocate water and energy, and whether federal land agencies should emphasize preservation, recreation, or resource extraction. This course is a survey course and will look at fish and wildlife protection (including the protection of endangered species), freshwater, energy, and public lands. A major goal will be to look at the flaws in current management and how that management can be improved. Class sessions will include both (1) critical examinations of current laws and policy and (2) in-depth discussions of situational case studies that force you to consider how you would address real-life issues.

Problem Solving and Decision Making for Public Policy and Social Change

Autumn  |  Course Link
Stanford graduates will play important roles in solving many of today’s and tomorrow’s major societal problems—in areas such as education, health, energy, and domestic and global poverty—that call for actions by nonprofit, business, and hybrid organizations as well as governments. This course teaches skills and bodies of knowledge relevant to these roles, covering topics such as designing, implementing, and evaluating social strategies; systems thinking; psychological biases that adversely affect people’s decisions; and approaches to influencing behavior. Most of the course will be devoted to students working in teams to apply these concepts and tools to a problem of their choice. The course may be of interest to students in Law and Policy Lab practicums who wish to broaden their policy analysis skills.

Tribal Law

Spring  |  Course Link
This course is about tribal law: The diverse body of law that the 574 American Indian tribal governments within the United States make to govern their citizens, their territories, and–to a limited extent–non-Indians. We will explore the many questions contemporary tribal governments navigate as they engage in everything from rewriting their constitutions to developing infrastructure and rules for local garbage collection. The course begins with a foundations unit focused on tribal government structure and tribal courts. The remainder of the course is a survey of tribal law topics selected by the students from among structural constitutional law, discrimination, fundamental rights, tribal membership, elections, the environment, contract disputes, taxes, gaming, family, crime, and procedure. Each chosen topic will be paired with readings as well as presentations from classmates on their research into a chosen topic in that topic area. Prerequisites: Federal Indian Law – encouraged.