Environment

In a nutshell

Environment lawyers advise corporate clients on damage limitation and pre-emptive measures, and they defend them from prosecution. In other words, the majority of private practitioners work for, rather than stick it to, big business. Opportunities do exist at organisations like Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth, but these jobs are highly sought after. Another non-commercial option is to work for a local authority, a government department such as the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) or a regulatory body like the Environment Agency.

Environment law overlaps with other disciplines such as property, criminal law, corporate or EU law. Environmental issues can be deal breakers, especially in the modern era of corporate social responsibility. However, the small size of most law firms’ environment teams means there are relatively few pure environmental specialists around.

What lawyers do

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Lawyers in private practice

Advise on the potential environmental consequences of corporate, property and projects transactions.
Advise on compliance and regulatory issues to help clients operate within regulatory boundaries and avoid investigation or prosecution.
Defend clients when they get into trouble over water or air pollution, waste disposal, emission levels or health and safety. Such cases can involve criminal or civil actions, judicial reviews and even statutory appeals. They may also be subject to damaging media coverage.

Lawyers with local authorities

Handle a massive variety of work covering regulatory and planning issues plus waste management and air pollution prosecutions.
Advise the authority on its own potential liability.

Lawyers working for Defra

Are responsible for litigation, drafting of subordinate legislation, advisory work and contract drafting on any of Defra’s varied mandates.
Work in a team of over 80 lawyers, including trainees, on GLS-funded schemes. Defra aims to promote sustainable development without compromising the quality of life of future generations.

Lawyers working for the Environment Agency

Prosecute environmental crimes – this involves gathering evidence, preparing cases and briefing barristers.
Co-operate with government lawyers on the drafting and implementation of legislation.
Work in Bristol and eight regional bases and are responsible for protecting and enhancing the environment. They also regulate corporate activities that have the capacity to pollute.

The realities of the job

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In this competitive and demanding field, all-round skills are best complemented by a genuine interest in a specific area. The way in which environmental law spans disciplines requires commercial nous and a good understanding of corporate structures.
Excellent academics are essential to help wade through, extrapolate from and present research and complex legislation; so too are sound judgement, pragmatism and the ability to come up with inventive solutions.
A basic grasp of science helps.
If you want to change environmental laws or crusade for a better planet, then stick to the public or non-profit sectors. The sometimes uncomfortable realities of private practice won’t be for you.
Client contact is key and relationships can endure over many years. Environmental risks are difficult to quantify and clients will rely on your gut instincts and powers of lateral thinking.
With visits to waste dumps or drying reservoirs, and a workload that can span health and safety matters, corporate transactions and regulatory advice all in one day, this is neither a desk-bound nor a quiet discipline.
Research constantly advances and legislation is always changing in this field, so you’ll spend a lot of time keeping up to date.
A taste for European law is essential as more and more EU directives prescribe the boundaries of environmental law in the UK.

Current issues

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The Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme (CRC) was brought in in 2010 to put a cap on the amount of carbon produced by organisations. This and other climate change-related legislation coming through is likely to result in an immense amount of regulatory compliance work.
The EU Environmental Liability Directive was updated in 2009, resulting in more companies taking up environmental insurance. Consequently, firms with an insurance focus have seen an increase in work on this front.
The Environment Agency has been taking a more stringent approach to clamping down on regulatory offences. Where businesses might previously have dealt with them in-house, lawyers are now being instructed to negotiate with EA. The costs involved can run into the millions.
An increasingly well-informed public also means an increasingly litigious public. A surge in class actions, usually involving pollution, odour or other forms of nuisance, is being witnessed across the board. Some lawyers speculated that the Environment Agency is slightly more ‘trigger happy'.
The increased focus on renewable energy in the UK has resulted in more work involving alternative forms of power, such as biomass, wind farm, nuclear and energy-from-waste projects. With the value of some recent deals reaching hundreds of millions, magic circle firms have been becoming more interested in the sector as well. The energy-from-waste projects are especially topical, as they have brought up issues regarding whether waste should be labelled as waste or a fuel.
Climate change isn’t just for academics any more. It’s a whole legal area in itself. Top-flight international firms are encountering this type of work more often, and international issues are coming to the fore. Initiatives like the Equator Principles and Corporate Social Responsibility are now prominent.
The carbon trading sector, at least in the UK, seems to be near dead in the water thanks to the recession. Manufacturers have been producing less, which has consequently meant they have needed to buy fewer carbon credits. This is an endemic problem at the moment, and carbon trading specialists are witnessing an all-time low in this type of work. This also means that no new blood/new lawyers have been entering the market, which could result in a dearth of specialists in the future. The failure of the Copenhagen convention also added to the climate change sector’s woes in that no real new, substantive legislation or changes were brought in to revitalise or rework the sector and its focus. Speak to a climate change lawyer and they’re often quite despondent about the sector’s future.
Keep on top of changes in environmental law courtesy of websites like www.endsreport.com. You should enhance your CV and prime yourself by joining organisations such as the Environmental Law Foundation (ELF) and the UK Environmental Law Association (www.ukela.org). Most environmental lawyers are members of UKELA and students are welcome to attend events across the country. The charity ELF (www.elflaw.org) provides a referral service for members of the public, organises lectures in London and produces regular newsletters for members.