All VLS Courses

Public Lands Management - Montana Field Study

A comparative approach to competing legal mandates and diverse philosophies that make federal land management a lively topic not only in the West, but throughout the country. Resource extraction, preservation, and sustainable/multiple-use concepts are addressed. 

Download the 2013 Course Syllabus

Public Law

This course provides a comprehensive introduction to public law, focusing on the constitutional structure of government, the legislative process and statutory interpretation, the nature and authority of public administrative agencies, the methods agencies use to establish regulations and other legal rules, and the process for judicial review of agency action.

Download the 2013 Summer Syllabus

Race and the Law Seminar

Provides an introduction to race as it relates to and is reflected in the law.  The seminar focuses on the role and experience of African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Latin-Americans, and Native-Americans in American society, with attention to questions concerning critical race theory, class, family, and feminism.  

RCRA - Solid and Hazardous Waste Regulation

Examines the regulation of solid and hazardous waste under the Resources Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Solid Waste Act, RCRA's overlap with other statutes, and the policy implications of the statute.  The course addresses the regulatory and policy problems associated with recycling, resource recovery, waste minimization, land disposal, incineration, underground storage tanks, and state and federal regulation of the generation, storage, transportation, treatment and disposal of solid and hazardous wastes.  

Regulating the Marine Environment

Examines the interaction of state, federal, and international regimes in the regulation of the marine environments through the examination of issues such as the marine environment as a source of energy; the nonrenewable resources of the seabed; and the winds, waves, currents, and temperatures of the sea itself.

Remedies

Studies the legal and equitable methods available to redress an infringement of legal rights, such as those rights provided by the laws of contracts, torts, equity, constitutional law, and civil procedure. 

Renewable Energy and Other Alternative Fuels

Explores the emerging field of renewable and alternative energy supplies. The course reviews local, state, and federal laws and policies that regulate such sources; considers emerging distributed generation models; surveys the range of emerging technologies; and considers proposed strategies for reducing greenhouse gases.

Download the 2013 Summer Course Syllabus

Renewable Energy Project Finance and Development

An in-depth look at the legal and regulatory issues associated with the development and project financing of renewable energy projects such as wind, hydro, solar, and geothermal, and the basic terms and conditions of the contracts that are necessary for a successful project financing, such as power purchase agreements, engineering contracts, fuel supply arrangements, and operation and maintenance agreements.

Representing a Private Business: Formation, Financing, Recruitment, Venture Capital/Private Equity, Acquisitions and Exit Strategies

Prepares students for the practice of transactional corporate law by providing them with a foundation on the law and processes related to corporate transactions, acquisitions, and divestitures of businesses.  Students draft documents, negotiate business issues, and organize the legal affairs for growing businesses.

Risk Assessment

A science and law course taught from the perspective of a scientist.   This course examines the science, methods, principles and limitations of risk assessment and, more broadly, teaches methods of evaluating and critiquing scientific information.