August 24, 2010
For third-year Tulane Law School student Roman Griffith, the 2010-11 academic year is off to a good start. On the first day of classes yesterday, the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic (TELC) student attorney argued and won his first case, which vacated a Lafayette oil company’s permit to create a saltwater disposal facility just south of Gueydan.
19th Judicial District Judge Tim Kelley ruled that the state Department of Natural Resource’s (DNR) Office of Conservation failed to adequately review Toce Energy’s application to redrill a saltwater disposal facility in what had been an abandoned well in the Gueydan Canal Fields.
Griffith, 24, said the judge held that DNR has a duty to answer “IT Questions” before granting a permit.
“We were very happy with the judge’s decision,” Griffith said on behalf of the TELC, which handled the case. “It was great to see the reaction of the clients. This is the community that they live in. There was a lot at stake for them.”
In addition to Griffith’s successful semester start, Tulane’s environmental law clinic has set the standards high with a 1-0 record in the opening days of its 21st year.
For the complete article (Advocate Acadiana bureau, Published: Aug 24, 2010 - Page: 1BA),
click here.
Tulane’s environmental law clinic was launched in 1989 to offer students a hands-on educational experience and to provide needed representation to communities and individuals otherwise unable to respond to an overwhelming array of issues in the region. One of the first such clinics in the country, it has also become the country’s largest. As many as 26 students enroll in the clinic each year to work on a variety of cases.
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about Tulane Law School’s Clinical Legal Education program.