Rick Frank to Lead New Environmental Law and Policy Center at King Hall

UC Davis School of Law is establishing a new California Environmental Law and Policy Center and has named Richard M. Frank as director.  Formerly the executive director of the Center for Law, Energy, & the Environment (CLEE) at UC Berkeley School of Law, Frank will lead the new center and teach classroom courses in the environmental law curriculum.

The new center is part of UC Davis School of Law's mission to provide significant public service through law reform and make substantial contributions toward solving the complex legal problems confronting our society. 

"UC Davis is famous for environmental education," said Dean Kevin R. Johnson. "The new California Environmental Law and Policy Center creates tremendous opportunities for joint studies with other departments at UC Davis, one of the nation's leading research universities.  Under the strong leadership of Rick Frank, the new center is poised to create practical public policy solutions."  

The new center will be housed in King Hall, the law school building dedicated to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  The center will create programs for students and provide financial resources to facilitate faculty research; build linkages for interdisciplinary endeavors in environmental law and policy throughout the UC Davis campus; and translate work into real-world solutions in the area of environmental law and policy.

"Environmental law and policy have always been key priorities for UC Davis School of Law," said Frank, a 1974 alumnus of the law school.  "I'm excited about the opportunity to collaborate with the law school's administration, faculty, and students to elevate King Hall's environmental profile even further."

A leading expert on energy and environmental issues, Frank practiced law with federal and state agencies for 32 years, most of that time with the California Department of Justice, where he specialized in environmental law matters and served as Chief Deputy Attorney General for Legal Affairs. 

In addition to Frank, UC Davis School of Law faculty including environmental law experts Albert Lin and Chris Elmendorf will contribute research to the new center. 

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