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Environmental Law

LLM in Environmental Law

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About the LLM in Environmental Law
Degree Requirements
Program Information and Specializations
LLM Fellowships

About the LLM in Environmental Law

The Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University was one of the first law schools in the country to develop a comprehensive and integrated curriculum in environmental law. With it came a commitment to ensure the sustainability of our natural and built environments. As the environmental program grew and prospered, it consistently achieved one of the highest rankings in the nation as an academic and action center.

There is no fee to apply to the LLM program and generous scholarships and LLM Fellowships are available. Fellows receive a full tuition waiver and a modest stipend to cover living expenses.

Degree Requirements

Both US-trained and international candidates must complete a minimum of 24 credits. The LLM in Environmental Law may be completed in two full-time semesters, although some students choose to take three semesters or more. Except with special permission of the Academic Dean, students must complete the LLM degree within three (3) years of matriculation. International students must complete Introduction to American Legal Systems and Introduction to US Legal Research and achieve at least a 2.33 grade point average. US-trained students must achieve a grade point average of 2.67. Unless registered in a specialized track, candidates are required to take the following courses:

LLM candidates must complete either one major research paper or a LLM thesis.

Program Information and Specializations

Haub Law’s LLM in environmental law prepares lawyers to address the scientific, economic and political forces that shape the environment and to work for outcomes that protect our natural surroundings and promote smart and sustainable development. Over 40 environmental courses are available to satisfy the requirements for the LLM in Environmental Law as well as the scholarly research degree of Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD) in Environmental Law.

The LLM program also offers three optional specializations in Global Environmental Law, Land Use and Sustainable Development Law, and Energy and Climate Change Law.

Global Environmental Law

Land Use and Sustainable Development Law

  • With the nation’s oldest and most active Land Use Law Center and a faculty that includes leading scholars in various areas of land use, green development, climate change, and sustainability law, Haub Law offers LLM candidates the opportunity to study law and policy with renowned experts. We offer a Specialization in Land Use and Sustainable Development Law within our renowned LLM in Environmental Law curriculum. This specialization trains lawyers to confront and overcome challenges arising from the need to develop and redevelop human settlements in an environmentally sensitive, commercially viable, and ecologically sustainable manner, both domestically and internationally.

Energy and Climate Change Law

LLM Fellowships

Fellows receive a full tuition waiver and a modest stipend to cover living expenses. Applications for the Environmental Law LLM Graduate Fellow position are open. To apply for the Fellowship you must be first admitted to our LLM in Environmental Law Program

  • The Fellow will support new Environmental Law Program initiatives as they are developed and implemented and assist with the National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition, among other tasks. The Fellow will work part-time in the Pace | Haub Environmental Law Program while working towards an LLM in Environmental Law.

    How to Apply

    You must complete BOTH Steps 1 and 2

    Step 1: Apply for the LLM in Environmental Law

    Step 2: Submit a cover letter (detailing your interest in this fellowship) and resume or curriculum vitae.
    Please make sure to mark ‘yes to the question “Are you an active Pace University Student?” even if you have not received your decision yet. Please note: We will not be able to see your application to this position if you mark ’no’ to this question.

    Questions? Email Achinthi Vithanage, Associate Director of Environmental Law Programs at

  • Pace University’s Elisabeth Haub School of Law is hiring a Food and Agriculture Law Graduate Fellow. The Fellow will work part time with the Pace Food Law Center and the Food and Farm Business Law Clinic while working towards an LLM in Environmental Law. The Pace-NRDC Food Law Initiative launched in Fall 2015 as a collaboration between the Pace Environmental Law Program and the Natural Resources Defense Council. The Initiative’s mission is to expand access to legal services for farmers, food entrepreneurs, and food justice organizations by increasing capacity of the legal community to meet those needs through education of law students and training of lawyers. The Fellow will help with clinic outreach, student supervision and client work, as well as coordinate training programs and curriculum.

    How to Apply

    You must complete BOTH Steps 1 and 2

    Step 1: Apply for the LLM in Environmental Law

    Step 2: Submit a cover letter (detailing your interest in this fellowship) and resume or curriculum vitae, and a list of three references.

  • Pace University’s Elisabeth Haub School of Law is hiring a Sustainable Business Law Graduate Fellow. The Fellow will work part-time in the Sustainable Business Law Hub and the Pace Environmental Law Program while working towards an LLM in Environmental Law. Haub Law’s Sustainable Business Law Hub serves as an incubator space, student-training program, research endeavor, and think tank devoted to addressing global sustainability challenges through policy and research projects, relationships and ESG consulting with the business community, and capacity building in private environmental governance and sustainability strategies.

    How to Apply

    You must complete BOTH Steps 1 and 2

    Step 1: Apply for the LLM in Environmental Law

    Step 2: Submit a cover letter (detailing your interest in this fellowship) and resume or curriculum vitae.