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A
Job To Love
Imagine standing in a community hall,
full of people dancing and feasting,
after an agreement has finally been
signed to open a new heritage site near
your hometown. You shake hands with
the Prime Minister and other dignitaries.
For years, you have been working with
community members to open this heritage
site to ensure access to and protection
of traditional lands. The site also
allows tourism to flourish and provides
jobs to your community's youth. You
modelled your negotiations after the
work done by Parks Canada and Nunavut
Tunngavik Incorporated, when the Ukkusiksalik
National Park was developed. Their negotiations
identified all stakeholders and placed
tremendous significance on Aboriginal
participation. After years of interviews
and meetings, the heritage site is official.
You’re proud to have played a role
in giving your community greater control
over their land and economy.
Environmental
lawyers fight environmental issues
and negotiate deals on behalf of the
natural world. They work mostly in
office settings, and usually in teams
with other lawyers. While there are
some lawyers in rural settings, most
work in urban centres. Many Aboriginal
environmental lawyers work with their
home communities to ensure equal and
fair representation on issues related
to land claims, resource exploration,
resource use, and environmental health.
It
takes many years of schooling to become
a lawyer, and the long hours won’t
end when you graduate. Most lawyers
work between 8 and 11 hours a day—sometimes
more during a trial or major negotiation.
On a daily basis, you’ll need
to read a lot to keep your knowledge
current. This work can be very stressful,
as there are always deadlines and
a lot can be expected of you. But
as an environmental lawyer, you have
the ability to meet those expectations
while working for the good of both
the environment and society as a whole.
The commitment is big, but the rewards
can be even bigger.
Job
Description
Environmental lawyers lobby against
practices, individuals, and organizations
that harm our natural world. For example,
a local community may be experiencing
negative effects from a landfill. The
community association may contact you
to represent them. You would interview
local people about the situation and
ask their doctors for medical examinations.
You would build a case for the people
in this community to prove that they
deserve compensation. Then, you would
try to negotiate a settlement with the
lawyer of the defendant. If no settlement
could be reached, you would argue the
case in court. While many lawyers work
for governments or non-profit environmental
groups, many lawyers also work for private
companies. Some own their own law firms.
Job
Duties
- Research
and interpret laws, regulations,
and judicial rulings as they relate
to a particular case
- Advise
clients on new environmental legislation
- Plead
clients’ cases before courts
of law, tribunals, and boards
- Negotiate
settlements of civil disputes
- Perform
administrative and management functions
- Write
reports about complex legal concepts
and environmental issues
- Draw
up legal documents
Fact
Grassroots lawyers from 10 countries
formed the Environmental Law Alliance
Worldwide (E-LAW) in 1989. E-LAW gives
public interest lawyers and scientists
around the world the skills and resources
they need to protect the environment
through law. Now, nearly 300 grassroots
lawyers and scientists in 60 countries
use the E-LAW network for critical
legal and scientific tools.
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High
school courses that will prepare you
for a job as an environmental lawyer
include social studies, English, math,
and economics. Aboriginal studies, history,
and languages will prepare you for working
in a multi-cultural setting. Talk to
your career or academic counsellor about
options such as political science, law,
business, psychology or finance. Also
discuss which math and science classes
you will need to enter your preferred
university.
The
minimum education requirement for
this job is a law degree. Most students
complete a four-year bachelor’s
degree in social sciences, political
science, English or a related discipline
before they apply to law. Then, to
apply to law school, you will have
to write the Law School Admission
Test (LSAT). After completing the
bachelor’s degree and passing
the LSAT, a law degree usually takes
an additional three or four years.
Graduates work for a period called
"articling" and then write
a provincial bar examination before
becoming a lawyer. A master’s
degree or Ph.D. will improve your
chances of employment and you’ll
find it easier to get a job and negotiate
your salary
To
be a Québec notary, you must
complete a bachelor of law degree
from a recognized law school. Then
you need to complete a diploma of
notarial law or a master of law degree
(with a specialization in notarial
law) as well as a 32-week vocational
training program. You must also be
registered with the corporation of
notaries.
Look
into specific high school prerequisites
set by the university you would like
to attend.
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Environmental
lawyers with a university degree make
an average of $60,000.00 per year.
Environmental
lawyers with a post-graduate degree
make an average of $75,000.00 per
year.
Environmental
lawyers with several years of education
and experience make an average of
$172,000.00 per year.
Financial
Assistance
In addition to the general scholarship
tips listed in the BUILD MY CAREER
section, the following awards are
specific to environmental lawyers:
The Indigenous Bar Association
Law Student Scholarship
$1,000.00 is awarded to a full-time
law student
Contact: Bonnie Missens
Semaganis Worme & Missens
Asimakaniseekan Askiy Indian Reserve
300-203 Packham Avenue
Saskatoon, SK
S7N 4K5
website: www.indigenousbar.ca
The
Indigenous Law Journal
Awards are presented to law students
who have had papers published in the
Indigenous Law Journal.
Contact: Indigenous Law Journal
c/o The University of Toronto
Faculty of Law
78 Queen's Park Circle
Toronto, ON
M5S 2C5
Telephone: (416) 946-8134
email: indigilaw.journal@utoronto.ca
website: www.indigenouslawjournal.org
Legal
Studies for Aboriginal People (LSAP)
Program
Contact: Legal Studies for
Aboriginal People Program
Department of Justice Canada
Programs Branch
284 Wellington Street, EMB - 6th floor
Ottawa, ON
K1A 0H8
Telephone: 1-888-606-5111 or (613)
941-0388
email: lsap@justice.gc.ca
website: http://canada.justice.gc.ca
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Some
of the best knowledge you’ll
gain for this job will come from listening
to the stories and wisdom of your
relations. Talk with your Elders about
traditional methods of conflict resolution
and negotiation. How did they traditionally
settle disputes? Listen to your friends
and family to learn about their feelings
on the environment and the law.
Relate to people in similar jobs:
- Environmental
policy analyst
- Aboriginal
liaison
- Environmental
scientist
- Traditional
ecological knowledge (TEK) advisor
Relate
and interact with environmental lawyers.
Ask them what they like about their
jobs and how you should get started.
The Indigenous Bar Association
/ Association du Barreau Autochtone
201-560 Johnson Street
Victoria, BC
V8W 3C6
Telephone: (250) 383-3902
Fax: (250) 383-3085
website: www.indigenousbar.ca
The Canadian Environmental Law
Association
130 Spadina Avenue
Suite 301
Toronto, ON
M5V 2L4
Telephone: (416) 960-2284
Fax: (416) 960-9392
website: www.cela.ca
Canadian
Institute for Environmental Law and
Policy (CIELAP)
130 Spadina Avenue, Suite 305
Toronto, ON
M5V 2L4
Telephone: (416) 923-3529
Fax: (416) 923-5949
email: cielap@cielap.org
website: www.cielap.org
Sierra
Legal Defence Fund
Vancouver Head Office
214- 131 Water Street
Vancouver BC
V6B 4M3
Telephone: (604) 685-5618
Fax: (604) 685-7813
email: sldf@sierralegal.org
Ontario
Office
30 Patrick Street
Suite 900
Toronto, ON
M5T 3A3
Telephone: (416) 368-7533
Fax: (416) 363-2746
email: sldfon@sierralegal.org
website: www.sierralegal.org
The
Canadian Bar Association
website: www.cba.org
Relate
to other students. Most universities
have Aboriginal student associations
and resource centres. Visit these
centres to find out what they have
to offer. Also look into community
centres, friendship centres, and multi-cultural
centres.
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