Values and Ethics Questions to Prepare for Class on April 17

ENVIRONMENTAL LAWYERING: VALUES AND ETHICS Ponder and be prepared to discuss your assigned ethical dilemma during class on April 17, 2014. Each student will have 5 minutes to present his/her response to the ethical dilemma posed and 5 minutes to lead or guide class discussion. [STUDENT] 1. How should you, as the in-house lawyer (governmental, NGO, or corporate), respond to violations or potential violations of environmental law that are within the control of the organization? a. Does your answer change if you, the lawyer, are outside counsel to the organization? b. Does your answer change if a non-lawyer within the organization confides in you, the lawyer, about the violations? [STUDENT] 2. What can/should a lawyer do when his/her personal values (environmental or other) conflict with those of his/her client or employer? Does it make a difference whether your client/employer is the government, an NGO, a corporation, or an individual? [STUDENT] 3. You are a lawyer at the general services agency responsible for state-owned buildings in your state. The agency proposes to close one of the state’s large, old office buildings in a blighted inner-city neighborhood. The building will be demolished, and the site will then be turned into a large public park. There are no other parks in this neighborhood. Although the state has a statute that requires the preparation of an environmental impact statement before a proposal of this magnitude can be carried out, the top management of the agency wishes to save the expense and delay that would be caused by a full environmental review process. You have been directed by the head of the agency to edit the project description to make sure the proposal will not trigger the statutory environmental review thresholds. a. What should you do? b. Would your response to management’s directive be different if the proposal were reversed, i.e., if the plan were to destroy a large public park in order to construct a large office building? If so, why? c. Does your view of the environmental benefits of the proposal affect your obligations regarding compliance with the statute? [STUDENT] 4. Using the Reserve Mining story (Lazarus, chapter 2, on the isite) and Section 7003 of RCRA, 42 U.S.C. § 6973, to frame the issue, how should you balance scientific uncertainty against the likelihood of environmental damage? What if environmental damage is only “possible” but not “likely”? Does it matter whether you are embroiled in litigation or not? a. Rachel will take the position of the corporate officers/management of Reserve Mining b. Ryan will take the position of the Reserve Mining scientists c. Corey will take the position of the outside lawyer representing Reserve Mining d. David will take the position of a lawyer representing the public interest (i.e., either a government lawyer or an NGO lawyer). How will you balance scientific uncertainty against the quest for “truth” in litigation? [STUDENT] 5. You work in the General Counsel’s Office at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Region IV, representing North Carolina. You have been asked to review a permit application to site a hazardous waste landfill in a poor, primarily non-Caucasian neighborhood. The application is in order and meets all regulatory requirements. What do you advise the General Counsel? [STUDENT] 6. What should you, an ethical environmental lawyer, do when your client asks you to push for delay in a case where the law is unclear and the result of delay is certain and continuing damage to the environment?