environmental law faculty hiring, 2022-23

For the past few years, I’ve written a post listing schools that are interested in hiring tenured or tenure-track environmental law faculty. This year's list appears below. 

Readers should be aware of a few things about this list. First, it is limited to tenured, tenure-track, and long-term-contract hiring. I haven't made an effort to identify visiting positions. That's because visiting positions tend to open up later in the academic year.

Second, this list may grow in the next few weeks, and I'll continue updating the post if it does, but it's also likely to remain incomplete. I've compiled the list by looking at Prawfsblawg's post on entry-level hiring committees and by soliciting input from the environmental law professors' listserve. There may be interested schools that (a) didn't post their interest on Prawfsblawg; (b) don't have faculty members on the listserve; and/or (c) choose to keep their hiring preferences to themselves. Schools’ priorities also may evolve over the next few months. Strong environmental law candidates therefore may draw interest from schools that aren't listed below.

Third, schools that are interested in environmental law hires are probably also looking at other subject areas. They may hire in those areas rather than environmental law, and they also may not hire at all.

Fourth, this is just a list, along with some very brief information provided by the schools. You get to find the full announcements on your own.

With those qualifiers, the list appears below. It’s long. This could be a (relatively) good year to become an environmental law professor.

- Dave Owen

Alabama is hoping to hire a professor in environmental law (including regulatory compliance).

Arizona seeks a water law attorney to represent clients and supervise students in its water law clinic.

Boston College lists “environmental law and justice” as an area of need.

Case Western lists environmental law as its first area of need.

Colorado hopes to hire in the natural resources/environmental law/energy law area.

Connecticut lists environmental law as an area of need. It also lists land use as a second area of interest.

Florida is seeking a director for its environmental law clinic and entry-level or lateral candidates in several areas, including environmental.

Florida State is looking for entry-level or lateral candidates in environmental law, among other areas.

George Washington is looking for an environmental and/or energy person. It also is looking for an environmental justice clinician (the position would be tenured or tenure-track).

Hawaii lists environmental law as an area of need, though behind several other areas.

Maine is looking for a property law professor, preferably with environmental interests.

Miami is hiring an environmental law clinic director.

Minnesota may be looking for two hires – one in energy law and one in water/environmental/climate law.

Notre Dame is looking at entry-level and lateral candidates in the general environmental law space.

Nova Southeastern is looking for an environmental law professor.

Pace is looking for a business law hire, preferably with the ability to teach a range of sustainable business classes.

San Diego lists environmental law as an area of need.

Seton Hall lists environmental law as an area of need, though behind several other subjects.

South Carolina lists environmental law as an area of need.

Temple is interested in an energy or environmental law person, especially if that person also can teach torts or con law.

Tennessee lists environmental law as an area of need.

Tulane is seeking to hire distinguished chairs in energy and environmental law. It also is seeking a clinical assistant (which means a licensed attorney) or associate professor to work in its environmental law clinic.

UC Irvine seeks a hire focused on infrastructure equity, which includes several environmental and environmental-adjacent fields.

Utah is looking for lateral or entry level hires with an interest in natural resources, water, or energy law.

Vermont is seeking two tenure-track environmental hires "with emphasis in the areas of water law, land use, sustainability, private governance, and environmental justice."

Washington University (St. Louis) lists environmental law as an area of need, though behind several other areas.

West Virginia lists environmental law and energy law as areas of need, though behind several other areas.

Willamette lists environmental law as an area of need, though behind several other areas.