Energy law has been a core component of the environmental law curriculum at GW since the program’s inception, addressing diverse topics such as utility regulation, climate change, national security and energy, environmental impacts of facilities siting, and property interests in natural resources. Initiatives for the development of alternative energy technology continue to place energy matters at the forefront of environmental law conversations. GW Law’s extraordinary energy law faculty members provide students with unparalleled expertise in this vital area of law. GW’s location at heart of the nation’s capital allows students to gain firsthand experience in and out of the classroom, to build an understanding of the connection between energy law and critical issues of public importance including national security through energy independence and development of renewable energy sources in the face of climate change.
Recent GW Law students have gained knowledge and skills in the area of energy law participating in outplacement assignments at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, energy-focused non-governmental organizations, and working at law firms specializing in energy law.
GW Law serves as host and co-sponsor of the annual Conference on the Law of Demand Response, and regularly hosts myriad energy law events such as an Energy Law career panel.
Members of the George Washington Journal of Energy and Environmental Law enhance their legal research and writing skills, while having the opportunity to become a published legal author.
Energy law issues are truly of international scope. GW Law’s relationship with the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, and as a member of the North American Consortium on Legal Education (NACLE), allows students to study international issues in energy law at partner institutions. In the Fall of 2011, GW Law initiated a pilot international energy law research project with the University of Groningen and the Getulio Vargas Foundation in Brazil, with the expectation of continuing this project on a bi-annual basis.