Below is a selection of recent news highlights featuring members of Vermont Law and Graduate School’s faculty and staff.

Francine Miller, Senior Staff Attorney

Understanding Heirs Property
July 11, 2025
Lincoln Institute of Land Policy
Francine Miller LLM’17, senior staff attorney with the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems, was quoted about the complexities of transferring property after a homeowner’s death.

Pat Parenteau, professor of law emeritus and senior fellow for climate policy, environmental law center

The EPA’s Disastrous Plan to End the Regulation of Greenhouse Gases
August 4, 2025
The New Yorker
An excerpt of a recent article published with The Conversation and written by Patrick Parenteau, professor of law emeritus and senior fellow for climate policy, was included in The New Yorker‘s analysis of the Trump administration’s proposed revocation of the “endangerment finding” of Massachusetts v. EPA.

Brett Stokes, director of the Center for Justice Reform Clinic at VLGS.

Amid Public Outcry, BTV Officials Say They Want to Help ICE Detainees Access Legal Advice in Airport
August 7, 2025
WHSU Public Radio
Vermont’s international airport has come under fire about the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) use of the facility to transfer detainees out of the state. Brett Stokes, director of the Center for Justice Reform Clinic, comments on the differences in his immigration defense work under the current administration.

Christophe Courchesne, director of the Environmental Advocacy Clinic

Forest Experts Warn Spending Bill Sets Up US Forest Service to Fail
August 11, 2025
Sierra
American public lands and forests are at threat with the passing of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Christophe Courchesne, director of the Environmental Law Center and Environmental Advocacy Clinic, is quoted about this policy reversal.

Delcianna Winders, Director of Animal Law and Policy Institute and Associate Professor

Faster Lines, Less Federal Oversight and Rising Risks at US Pork and Poultry Plants 
August 13, 2025
Investigate Midwest
As swine and poultry plants across the country increase their rates of animal processing and inspection in the name of modernization, Delcianna Winders, director of the Animal Law and Policy Institute, cautions against the rush and cites the consequences of jeopardizing humane handling.

Laurie Beyranevand JD'03, director of the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems and Pescosolido Professor of Food and Agricultural Law and Policy

Walmart’s ‘Radioactive Shrimp’ Recall Isn’t a Reason to Fear Irradiated Food
August 21, 2025
Popular Science
Laurie Beyranevand JD’03, director of the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems and Pescosolido Professor of Food and Agricultural Law and Policy, comments on the practice of irradiating food for decontamination purposes after a recent FDA advisory regarding a frozen Walmart shrimp that contained higher than usual traces of Cs-137, a radioisotope of cesium.

Mark James, interim director of the Institute for Energy and the Environment at VLGS.

Worried About AI’s Soaring Energy Needs? Avoiding Chatbots Won’t Help – But 3 Things Could
August 23, 2025
ZDNet
Mark James, interim director of the Institute for Energy and the Environment, is quoted about the energy demands of AI data centers, estimating that at their full capacity, these centers will consume 1,000 megawatts— “the same size as the peak demand of the state of Vermont—600,000 plus people—for months.”

Christophe Courchesne, director of the Environmental Advocacy Clinic

Moments with Melinda: Interview with Christophe Courchesne
Town Meeting TV
Christophe Courchesne, director of the Environmental Law Center and Environmental Advocacy Clinic, sat down with Melinda Moulton to discuss his work at VLGS—and why training the next generation of advocates is more urgent than ever.