March 30, 2020

The Center for Animal Law Studies Launches New International Wildlife Law Clinic

The Center for Animal Law Studies (CALS) and the Environmental Law Program at Lewis & Clark Law School are pleased to announce a new International Wildlife Law Clinic.

The Center for Animal Law Studies (CALS) and the Environmental Law Program at Lewis & Clark Law School are pleased to announce a new International Wildlife Law Clinic. The Clinic – to be launched in the fall of 2020 and taught by wildlife law expert and scholar, Professor Erica Lyman – will provide a forum for CALS’ Animal Law LLM students to study international wildlife law in a clinic setting with the goal of advancing the protection of wildlife across the globe.

The Environmental Law Program at Lewis & Clark Law School is consistently ranked number one in the country by U.S. News and World Report. The creation of the International Wildlife Law Clinic builds upon those strengths and facilitates collaboration between the unparalleled Environmental Law Program and the world-renowned Animal Law Program at CALS. The new Clinic also comes at a critical time, as CALS Executive Director, Pamela Hart, notes: “Given the coronavirus global pandemic, focusing on our disordered relationship with non-human animals, including wildlife, has never been more important. With the launch of the International Wildlife Law Clinic, we are bringing together the fields of animal and environmental law to focus on these critically important issues.” The Clinic will re-examine our relationship with wildlife, with a goal of finding innovative pathways to improving the lives of animals, people, and protecting the planet.

Professor Lyman brings a wealth of experience to her new role. She joined Lewis & Clark Law School’s International Environmental Law Project (IELP) as a staff attorney and Clinical Professor in 2005. Professor Lyman now serves as the director of IELP. She has worked extensively with governments, non-governmental organizations, and international institutions. Professor Lyman’s practice focuses on international wildlife trade, whaling, climate change, and other pressing international animal and environmental matters.

The new International Wildlife Law Clinic is CALS’ third clinical offering, joining the Animal Law Litigation Clinic (focusing exclusively on farmed animal protection) and the Animal Law Clinic (focusing on general practice and policy). CALS remains the only program in the world to offer an advanced legal degree in animal law, having already educated and trained 52 graduates from 19 countries around the world. The Clinic will enable CALS’ LLM students to gain the expertise they need in both animal law and environmental law to return to their home countries and advance animal protection through the law. Dean of Animal Law, Professor Pamela Frasch, underscores the importance of the new Clinic, saying “It is with a renewed sense of urgency and purpose that we educate the next generation of animal law attorneys in essential, and overlapping, concepts of environmental and animal law.”

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About the Center for Animal Law Studies

The Center for Animal Law Studies (CALS) was founded in 2008 with a mission to educate the next generation of animal law attorneys and advance animal protection through the law. With vision and bold risk-taking, CALS has since developed into a world-renowned animal law epicenter, with the most comprehensive animal law curriculum offered anywhere. In addition, CALS is the only program that offers an advanced legal degree in animal law and three Animal Law Clinics. CALS is a nonprofit organization and is only able to provide these educational opportunities through donations and grants.

About the Environmental Law Program

Lewis & Clark Law School’s Environmental Law program is number one in the country according to U.S. News and World Report rankings. The program has been in the first or second spot in the US News rankings for some 25 years. The program is celebrating its 50th year in 2020. It was founded in 1970, the year of the first Earth Day and the launch of major federal environmental legislation. “We focus on offering our students outstanding learning opportunities, in the classroom and in our clinics and the community, along with exposure to the most important environmental issues facing our planet,” said Associate Dean Janice Weis, who leads the Environmental, Natural Resources, and Energy Law program.