John Bonine
Professor of Law, University of Oregon School of Law

"From Silent Spring to Sweltering Summers --
The Past and Future of Private Public Interest Law"

The environmental law movement began with private lawyers, more than a decade before nonprofit law firms existed. From the early DDT litigation on Long Island in the 1950s to the historic Storm King litigation in the 1960s, private lawyers blazed the trails. Today, big nonprofit law firms generate publicity, have nice websites, and publish their own magazines and newsletters. But private lawyers and smaller nonprofits play a role in developing public interest environmental law that is even larger.

Why is the most innovative litigation to combat global warming being brought by the "little folks"? What role will the "private public interest bar" play in cooling down our summers? 

Should today's public interest law students study the maps of known territory in law school placement offices, following well-worn trails to limited existing job opportunities? 

Or can students and private lawyers find their own Storm Kings -- their own world-changing work -- in a wilderness of new challenges? Professor Bonine will discuss how the future cooling of the planet lies in the hands of those willing to travel where no guides and no trails can take them.