The thesis analysed unique data collected in the Environmental Law Foundation (E.L.F.), a London-based charity with a network of legal advisers located throughout the UK. It had two main purposes: firstly, to prove that costs constitute a barrier to judicial review and; secondly, to understand better the concept of environmental justice in light of polycentricity. Environmental justice focuses on patterns of disproportionate exposure to environmental hazards and promotes increased access to information and participation in decision-making. Adjudication is said to have a limited role in achieving environmental equity as it rarely addresses issues of political and economic distribution. The thesis analysed the UNECE Aarhus Convention which is binding in the UK. It is alleged that the UK Government is in breach of the Convention's third pillar which requires access to a review procedure not to be "prohibitively expensive" (art 9(4)). E.L.F. receives calls for support from primarily poor communities facing environmental problems and refers the viable ones to a legal adviser for free initial advice. The study reviewed 774 referrals focusing on 219 of these at various stages of judicial review. A half of these referrals received a negative opinion as to the prospects of success at judicial review and the remaining half were advised to proceed. In the latter pool there were 54 cases which were prevented by the cost barrier. A significant number concluded in out-of-court/in-court settlement. The latter sample consisted of planning law-based claims which are polycentric due to the variety of involved interests. The data was also matched with the Indices of Multiple Deprivation to show polycentricity. The findings were analysed through the participatory thesis of judicial review and the concept of limits of adjudication. Thus access to adjudication may create opportunities for engagement and contributes to achieving environmental justice.

US regulatory agencies frequently use cost-benefit analysis ('CBA') in their decision-making, and several such CBAs have been challenged in court. This paper argues that in cases involving the valuation of environmental benefits, substantive judicial review of agency CBAs is, and should be, less deferential than most commentators would suggest. Direct challenges to agency CBAs can take two forms. First, a court may be asked to review whether the agency was authorised to rely on a CBA (if it did) or whether it was required to (if it did not). Second, the challenge may be directed at the adequacy of the CBA itself. The literature so far has mostly concentrated on the first category of cases; this paper focuses on the second. Several scholars favour a deferential standard of judicial review, primarily on the basis that CBA involves technical questions which agency experts, as opposed to generalist judges, are more qualified to answer. Since CBA typically involves monetisation of costs and benefits and environmental benefits are notoriously hard to quantify, the argument for judicial deference would appear to be even stronger in the context of environmental regulation. Based on a review of US appellate court decisions involving valuation of environmental benefits, I argue that the difficulties inherent in such valuation are not only technical or methodological - the kind that experts are arguably better equipped to address. Before dealing with methodological questions, i.e. how benefits are to be measured, the valuer must first determine which benefits are relevant - a determination which involves value judgments, questions of policy and statutory purpose. As an empirical matter, I show that courts do in fact engage with these questions in the judicial review of CBA. As a normative matter, based on an evaluation of the case law and the nature of questions at issue, I argue that this is how it should be.

"The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) faces numerous legal challenges as it implements the nation's environmental laws. Several statutes, such as the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, allow citizens to file suit against EPA to challenge certain agency actions. Where EPA is named as a defendant, the Department of Justice provides EPA's legal defense. If successful, plaintiffs may be paid for certain attorney fees and costs. Payments are made from the Department of the Treasury's Judgment Fund-a permanent fund available to pay judgments against the government, as well as settlements resulting from lawsuits-or EPA's appropriations. For this review, GAO was asked to examine (1) the trends in and factors affecting environmental litigation for fiscal years 1995 through 2010 and (2) Justice's recent costs and recent plaintiff payments from the Judgment Fund and EPA.To conduct this review, GAO obtained and analyzed data from two Justice databases on cases filed under 10 key environmental statutes. To gain stakeholder views on any trends and factors that might affect them, GAO interviewed representatives of environmental and industry groups, state attorneys general, and other experts. GAO estimated the costs of litigation handled by Justice attorneys and payments made for attorney fees and court costs from the Judgment Fund and EPA funds.GAO is making no recommendations..."

The Model Rules of Professional Conduct provides an up-to-date resource for information on legal ethics. Federal, state and local courts in all jurisdictions look to the Rules for guidance in solving lawyer malpractice cases, disciplinary actions, disqualification issues, sanctions questions and much more. In this volume, black-letter Rules of Professional Conduct are followed by numbered Comments that explain each Rule's purpose and provide suggestions for its practical application. The Rules will help you identify proper conduct in a variety of given situations, review those instances where discretionary action is possible, and define the nature of the relationship between you and your clients, colleagues and the courts.

Evaluates the fundamental legitimacy of judicial practice in the growing number of environmental cases heard before international courts.

In January 2009, the then Master of the Rolls, Sir Anthony Clarke, appointed Lord Justice Jackson to lead a fundamental review of the rules and principles governing the costs of civil litigation. This report intends to establish how the costs rules operate and how they impact on the behavior of both parties and lawyers.

Softbound - New, softbound print book.

The past twenty-five years have seen a significant evolution in environmental policy, with new environmental legislation and substantive amendments to earlier laws, significant advances in environmental science, and changes in the treatment of science (and scientific uncertainty) by the courts. This book offers a detailed discussion of the important issues in environmental law, policy, and economics, tracing their development over the past few decades through an examination of environmental law cases and commentaries by leading scholars. The authors focus on pollution, addressing both pollution control and prevention, but also emphasize the evaluation, design, and use of the law to stimulate technical change and industrial transformation, arguing that there is a need to address broader issues of sustainable development. Environmental Law, Policy, and Economics,which grew out of courses taught by the authors at MIT, treats the traditional topics covered in most classes in environmental law and policy, including common law and administrative law concepts and the primary federal legislation. But it goes beyond these to address topics not often found in a single volume: the information-based obligations of industry, enforcement of environmental law, market-based and voluntary alternatives to traditional regulation, risk assessment, environmental economics, and technological innovation and diffusion. Countering arguments found in other texts that government should play a reduced role in environmental protection, this book argues that clear, stringent legal requirements--coupled with flexible means for meeting them--and meaningful stakeholder participation are necessary for bringing about environmental improvements and technologicial transformations.

Modern environmental regulation and its complex intersection with international law has led many jurisdictions to develop environmental courts or tribunals. Strikingly, the list of jurisdictions that have chosen to do this include numerous developing countries, including Bangladesh, Kenya and Malawi. Indeed, it seems that developing nations have taken the task of capacity-building in environmental law more seriously than many developed nations. Environmental Justice in India explores the genesis, operation and effectiveness of the Indian National Green Tribunal (NGT). The book has four key objectives. First, to examine the importance of access to justice in environmental matters promoting sustainability and good governance Second, to provide an analytical and critical account of the judicial structures that offer access to environmental justice in India. Third, to analyse the establishment, working practice and effectiveness of the NGT in advancing a distinctively Indian green jurisprudence. Finally, to present and review the success and external challenges faced and overcome by the NGT resulting in growing usage and public respect for the NGT’s commitment to environmental protection and the welfare of the most affected people. Providing an informative analysis of a growing judicial development in India, this book will be of great interest to students and scholars of environmental justice, environmental law, development studies and sustainable development.

Environmental Interests in Investment Arbitration Challenges and Directions Flavia Marisi Economic growth, social inclusion, and environmental protection stand at the core of sustainable development, which aims to deliver long-term growth for current and future generations. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) can play a key role in sustainable development. Host states’ benefits descending from FDI inflows include tax revenues, technology transfer, specialised training of local human resources, network with satellite activities, better availability of quality products and customer-centric services. These downstream effects jointly stimulate economic growth and social inclusion. This thoroughly researched book explores the relationship between environmental protection – the third component of sustainable development – and FDI. In practice, the intersection between environmental protection and foreign investment not only has generated remarkable success stories such as cross-sectoral green investment but has also in some instances led to severe cases of environmental degradation. Certain foreign investments resulted in open-pit mines leaking harmful substances into the soil, excessive deforestation, improper treatment of water, pollution of groundwater and contamination of mud pits following oil exploitation, leaving the host state with significant environmental damage. Some other cases have witnessed the host state withdrawing or infringing its own environmental policies, which could, in principle, lead to a decrease in the value of the foreign investment as a result of natural resources deterioration. In recent years, an increasing number of investment arbitration cases have seen a clash between the states’ commitments towards their citizens, which include the duty to protect the environment, their health and well-being, and the commitment towards foreign investors to protect their investments. In this book, the author focuses on investor-state cases in which environmental protection measures have been contested and discusses substantive mechanisms in treaty drafting, rules of Customary International Law, and interpretation doctrines, which are aimed at taking environmental concerns into consideration. The topics covered include the following: statistical analysis of investor-state cases where environmental protection measures have been contested; the role of environmental principles in investor-state arbitration; treaty mechanisms addressing environmental concerns; legal tools available under Customary International Law to address environmental interests; the application of the doctrines of proportionality, police powers, and margin of appreciation; and environmental counterclaims as an instrument to claim compensation for environmental damage. The author provides a detailed framework on the normative architecture, offers an extensive analysis of the relevant case law, and proposes concrete solutions to the identified clashes, aimed at refining the balance between environmental and investment protection. With its in-depth analysis and careful documentation, this book aptly captures the inherent fragmentation of international law and undoubtedly represents an invaluable resource for both international law practitioners and scholars. The solution-oriented approach adopted in the book will be welcomed by legal counsel, law firms, investment treaty negotiators, and decision makers at the different stages of investment lawmaking and practice, as well as by international institutions and academics.