Law Commons^™

The Implementation Gap In Environmental Law, Daniel A. Farber

Daniel A Farber

The gap between legislative expectations and actual outcomes is of central importance to the legal regime. Much of the work of environmental lawyers involves compliance or enforcement efforts, not rulemaking. Even in terms of the issuance of environmental rules, there can be substantial deviations between what the lawmaker expected and what actually takes place. This Article discusses two types of gaps between the statutory design and actual implementation. In some situations, something that is legally mandated simply fails to happen. Deadlines are missed, standards are ignored or fudged, or enforcement efforts misfire. The result is incomplete implementation, falling short of …

Adapting To Climate Change With Law That Bends Without Breaking, Holly Doremus

Holly Doremus

Climate change, the key environmental challenge of this century, is a tough problem for law in many ways. The topic of this panel, instrument choice, highlights a particularly difficult, important, and under-recognized aspect of the climate change challenge: the difficulty of devising a system of environmental law that combines the flexibility necessary to deal with a changing world with the rigidity and accountability essential to hold us to the difficult task of environmental protection.

The Geography Of Climate Change Litigation: Implications For Transnational Regulatory Governance, Hari M. Osofsky

Hari Osofsky

This Article aims to forward the dialogue about transnational regulatory governance through a law and geography analysis of climate change litigation. Part II begins by considering fundamental barriers to responsible transnational energy production. Part III proposes a place-based approach to dissecting climate change litigation and a model for understanding its spatial implications. Parts IV through VI map representative examples of climate change litigation in subnational, national, and supranational fora. The Article concludes by exploring the normative implications of this descriptive geography; it engages the intersection of international law, international relations, and geography as a jumping-off point for a companion article.

Multiscalar Governance And Climate Change: Reflections On The Role Of States And Cities At Copenhagen, Hari M. Osofsky

Hari Osofsky

No abstract provided.

Scaling "Local": The Implications Of Greenhouse Gas Regulation In San Bernardino County, Hari M. Osofsky

Hari Osofsky

This Essay analyzes local climate regulation in San Bernardino County as a window into the complexities of defining a local scale in an interconnected world. In so doing, it aims to contribute to the Symposium's broader dialogue about "Territory Without Boundaries" and the Panel's more specific discussion of "Urban Territory in a Global World." As a purely territorial matter, U.S. cities and counties differ substantially in their sizes, the quantity and physical characteristics of their land, the size and density of their populations, and the needs of their citizens. Structurally, these localities remain administrative subunits of states, but they also …

Climate Change And Crises Of International Law: Possibilities For Geographic Reenvisioning, Hari M. Osofsky

Hari Osofsky

No abstract provided.

Global Justice In The Anthropocene, Carmen G. Gonzalez

Carmen G. Gonzalez

Behavioral Public Choice And The Carbon Tax, Gary M. Lucas Jr

Gary M. Lucas Jr.

In response to the historic Paris Agreement on climate change and to the Environmental Protection Agency’s recently finalized Clean Power Plan, economists and other climate policy experts have renewed the call for the United States to adopt a carbon tax. Opposition among the public presents a major obstacle. While a majority of the public supports government action on climate change, most people favor the use of “green” subsidies and command-and-control regulations—a fact that frustrates economists of all political stripes who contend that a carbon tax would be much cheaper and more effective. This Article argues that a cognitive bias known …