Deborah Sivas
« Back to This Page Has Moved...
Deborah Sivas
Senior Fellow - Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment; Member of Academic Council; Luke W. Cole Professor of Environmental Law; Director of the Stanford Environmental Law Clinic
Type:
Senior Fellow
School:
Environmental and Natural Resources Law and Policy
Research Area(s):
Climate, Oceans, Other
Biography
A leading environmental litigator, Deborah Sivas, JD ’87, is director of the highly regarded Environmental Law Clinic, in which students provide legal counsel to dozens of national, regional and grassroots nonprofit organizations on a variety of environmental issues. Sivas’s litigation successes include challenging the Bush administration’s gas mileage standards for SUVs and light trucks and holding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency accountable for regulating the discharge of invasive species in ship ballast water. Her current research is focused on the interaction of law and science in the arena of climate change and coastal/marine policy and the ability of the public to hold policymakers accountable. She is a frquent speaker on these topics.
Before coming to Stanford, Sivas was a partner at Gunther, Sivas & Walthall, an attorney with Earthjustice (formerly Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund), an associate in the environmental practice group at Heller Ehrman and a law clerk to Judge Judith N. Keep of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. She currently serves as chair for the board of directors for the Turtle Island Restoration Network. In recognition of her work on behalf of the environment, California Lawyermagazine named Sivas one of its 2008 Attorneys of the Year.
News & Press Releases
Honoring an Unsung Sustainability Champion »
The annual Stanford Bright Award recognizes unheralded individuals who have made significant contributions to global sustainability. Polly Courtice has won the 2015 award for her efforts in guiding thousands of business leaders to more sustainable business practices.
View More News & Press Releases