Douglas R. Williams, J.D.
Professor of Law
Courses Taught
Administrative Law, Competition Based Advocacy, Constitutional Law I, Constitutional Law II, Environmental Law, Natural Resources Law, Seminar: Sustainable Urban Development Law, Torts, Urban Issues Symposium
Education
Practice Areas
- Administrative Law
- Appellate Practice
- Biodiversity
- Constitutional Law
- Energy, Economics, Environment
- Environmental Law
- Federal Courts
- Land Use Law
- Legal Ethics
- National Resources Legislation
- OSHA
- Presidency
- U.S. Supreme Court
Research Interests
Douglas R. Williams's area of expertise is in environmental law. While his initial scholarship focused on the general problem of placing monetary values on natural resources, his subsequent research has focused more on particular environmental programs, such as the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act.
Publications and Media Placements
He has written about the relationship between state and federal regulators and voluntary
versus regulatory approaches to environmental protection. Professor Williams has several
manuscripts in progress and co-authored the book, Wetlands Law and Policy: Understanding
Section 404.
Community Work and Service
After graduating from Duke Law School, Professor Williams clerked for the Honorable
Douglas H. Ginsburg on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
He later became an associate with Covington & Burling in Washington, D.C., at a time
when the federal government began asserting claims for damages to natural resources.
While in private practice, his firm represented the Exxon Shipping Company in connection
with the Valdez oil spill in Alaskan waters in 1989. Williams has served as a consulting
counsel to the Sierra Club and other environmental groups. In a recent case, he helped
the Sierra Club convince the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that the Environmental Protection
Agency鈥檚 implementation of the Clean Air Act in St. Louis was improper and unlawful.
While in practice, Williams also represented a client pro bono in post-conviction
death penalty proceedings. He has also written in the area of ethics and constitutional
law and maintains an interest in constitutional law, particularly congressional powers.