January 23, 2020: State Bar Honors Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

The Environmental and Energy Law Section of the New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) will present its highest honor to the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law on Friday, Jan. 31, at the 2020 Annual Meeting.

The Environmental and Energy Law Section Award honors distinguished service to the protection of the environment.

“This award is given in recognition of the distinguished leadership of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law in developing legal techniques, fostering legal training and disseminating informational resources on climate change,” said Section Chair Howard Tollin. “The contributions of the Sabin Center have been significant in the advancement of initiatives to address critical environmental issues.”

The Sabin Center at Columbia Law School is a member center of the Earth Institute at Columbia University. The center was founded in 2009 by Michael Gerrard, who is faculty director of the center and the Andrew Sabin Professor of Professional Practice at Columbia Law. Michael Burger, the executive director of the Sabin Center, will receive the award on behalf of the center.

The center works to develop and promulgate legal techniques to fight climate change, trains law students and lawyers in their use and provides up-to-date resources on climate change law and regulations. It is a frequent collaborator with Earth Institute scientists.

“The climate crisis is here. It is not going away. Lawyers and the law have a central role to play in helping society make the necessary transition from fossil fuels to clean energy, and from inequitable vulnerability to resilience,” said Burger. “We are honored that NYSBA – a climate leader in its own right – recognizes the Sabin Center’s contribution to this effort.”

Honoring attorneys who render extraordinary service to the public and the profession is part of NYSBA’s Annual Meeting, which each January attracts thousands of lawyers from around the state, the nation and the world. They come to meet and connect with colleagues and to learn from experts in many areas of law.

A wide range of programs at NYSBA’s 143rd Annual Meeting Jan. 27-31 will explore current issues in law and legal practice. The Presidential Summit on Wednesday, Jan. 29, will look at White Nationalism and Domestic Terrorism in America.

At Thursday evening’s sold-out Gala Dinner, U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Elena Kagan will receive the Gold Medal, NYSBA’s highest honor, and participate in a fireside-style chat with Prof. John Barrett of St. John’s University School of Law.

Other featured speakers at the Annual Meeting include New York State Attorney General Letitia James, the first African American and the first woman elected to that office; Janet DiFiore, chief judge of the New York State Court of Appeals; and Craig Boise, dean of Syracuse University College of Law.

For more information on NYSBA’s Annual Meeting, click here.

About the New York State Bar Association
The New York State Bar Association is the largest voluntary state bar association in the nation. Since 1876, NYSBA has helped shape the development of law, educated and informed the legal profession and the public, and championed the rights of New Yorkers through advocacy and guidance in our communities.

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Contact: Joan Fucillo 
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518-487-5670