Water from a polluted river

Costs and legal rules are two major obstacles that prevent people from obtaining justice on environmental matters. Be it in a court of law or an administrative agency, people must have a place to go to resolve environmental disputes. Costs and outdated legal rules often keep people at bay forcing them to suffer environmental harm or continue environmental conflicts.

In a recent memorandum authored for the Access Initiative, Professor John Bonine, a leading environmental law academic from the University of Oregon’s School of Law, identifies good (and in some cases best) practices from around the world and suggests legal reforms that can help people obtain relief and resolve environmental conflicts.