Think of all the professional development, legal enlightenment,
and academic camaraderie you get from a Villanova Law Symposium...

Now Double It!

1 law school.1 day. 2 amazing opportunities to develop your legal mind
and professional relationships. And pile up some serious CLE credits.

This symposium will be webcast live!

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2008 Villanova Environmental Law Journal Symposium (ELJ)

Topic

NEPA and Climate Change

Overview

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires federal agencies to consider the environmental impact of their proposed actions by, among other things, preparing an Environmental Impact Statement for any major federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment. Until recently, environmental reviews conducted pursuant to NEPA have usually not considered climate change impacts - that is, the effects of federal actions on global climate change, and the effects of global climate change on federal actions.

Meanwhile, as concerns over climate change have increased, pressure has been mounting to incorporate climate change into federal environmental policies. In the absence of climate change legislation, environmental groups are looking for ways to use existing laws - including NEPA - to address climate change. Environmentalists have started suing federal agencies for failing to consider climate change impacts in their Environmental Impact Statements. In February 2008, three environmental groups - the International Center for Technology Assessment, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Sierra Club - petitioned the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) to issue regulations that would require federal agencies to analyze climate change impacts in environmental review documents prepared pursuant to NEPA. Both the ongoing (and likely future) litigation and the pending petition to CEQ raise the issue of whether and how climate change impacts should be addressed under NEPA. The 2008 Villanova Environmental Law Journal Symposium will examine this issue, bringing together practitioners from government, environmental groups, and private practice, as well as academics, to discuss this cutting-edge issue.

2008 Villanova Sports & Entertainment Law Journal Symposium (SELJ)

Topic

The House that Taxpayers Built: Stadiums, Speech, and Public Funding

Overview

Professional sports teams have long been a source of civic pride and publicity. In the 1990s, American cities began to compete for sports franchises by offering resources to help teams build a new class of stadiums that focus on spectator amenities. As the cost of modern stadiums continues to rise, states and municipalities are now expected to make substantial financial contributions during and after construction. Nevertheless, the stadiums remain privately owned. These private sporting organizations have recently begun regulating fan speech, behavior and attitude well beyond that which is required for public safety and stadium security. This symposium will evaluate First Amendment jurisprudence and the possibility of a constitutional remedy when private owners restrict speech in these publicly funded and socially important spaces.

Program Schedule

9:00 a.m.
Environmental Law Journal Symposium
NEPA and Climate Change

1:00 p.m.
Sports & Entertainment Law Journal Symposium
The House that Taxpayers Built: Stadiums, Speech, and Public Funding

Registration

General registration, including full program materials, and Pennsylvania Continuing Legal Education certificate, is $30 for one symposium, ($12 for students) or $60 for both. The symposiums will be held in Room 29, Garey Hall. Each program has been approved by the Pennsylvania Continuing Legal Education Board for three substantive credits.

Space is limited so advance registration is advised.

Register above or call Megan Jacobs, Law Journals Coordinator, at 610-519-7053.

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Program registrants who are unable to afford continuing legal course registration fees due to financial hardship may petition for registration fee waivers or discounted program fees. A petition for a reduced fee shall be filed at the same time the attorney pre-registers for the program, and state why the normal fee associated with the program causes the lawyer a financial hardship. The petition must be signed by the lawyer. The Law School’s CLE coordinator may waive or reduce the fee for the CLE program at his/her discretion.