Employers
Many lawyers are employed in full-time, salaried positions in government, in law firms or other corporations, or in nonprofit organizations, such as the Natural Resources Defense Council or the Environmental Defense Fund. Most government-employed lawyers work at the state and local levels. Those employed by the federal government work in many different agencies, including the Departments of Interior, Agriculture (U.S. Forest Service), Energy, and Justice, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency. Lawyers outside of government work as house counsel for public utilities, banks, insurance companies, real estate agencies, manufacturing firms, and other businesses and nonprofit organizations. Some lawyers teach a particular subject at law schools; others work as administrators.
Starting Out
Environmental law students secure internships while they are in law school so they can gain firsthand experience in the field. Students can get an earlier start by finding a summer or part-time job at an environmental law firm or in the legal department of a nonprofit organization. Many environmental lawyers learn about job opportunities through job sites, with the assistance of their law school career services office, or by contacting potential employers directly.
- Agricultural Scientists
- Air Quality Engineers
- Aquarists
- Arbitrators
- Arborists
- Archaeologists
- Archivists
- Bail Bondsmen
- Bailiffs
- Bankruptcy Lawyers
- Biochemists
- Bioenergy/Biofuels Workers
- Biofuels Processing Technicians
- Biofuels Production Managers
- Biofuels/Biodiesel Technology and Product Development Managers
- Biologists
- Biomass Plant Technicians
- Biomass Power Plant Managers
- Biotechnology Patent Lawyers
- Bodyguards
- Border Patrol Agents
- Botanists
- Bounty Hunters
- Brownfield Redevelopment Specialists and Site Managers
- Chemists
- Chief Sustainability Officers
- Civil Engineers
- Civil Litigation Lawyers
- Climate Scientists
- Corporate Climate Strategists
- Corporate Lawyers
- Court Interpreters and Translators
- Court Reporters
- Criminal Lawyers
- Ecologists
- Elder Law Attorneys
- Energy Conservation Technicians
- Energy Consultants
- Environmental Economists
- Environmental Education Program Directors
- Environmental Engineers
- Environmental Lobbyists
- Environmental Planners
- Environmental Restoration Planners
- Environmental Scientists
- Environmental Technicians
- EPA Special Agents
- Family Lawyers
- Fish and Game Wardens
- Forensic Experts
- Forensic Meteorologists
- Foresters
- Forestry Technicians
- Geological Technicians
- Geologists
- Geophysicists
- Green Builders
- Green Hotel/Resort Ecomanagers
- Green Products Manufacturers
- Green Transportation Careers
- Grounds Managers
- Groundwater Professionals
- Hazardous Waste Management Specialists
- Hazardous Waste Management Technicians
- Hedge Fund Lawyers
- Historians
- Horticultural Inspectors
- Horticultural Technicians
- Hydropower and Marine Energy Industry Workers
- Indoor Environmental Health Specialists
- Industrial Ecologists
- Intellectual Property Lawyers
- Judges
- Land Acquisition Professionals
- Land Trust or Preserve Managers
- Landscape Architects
- Landscapers
- Law Librarians
- Lawyers
- Legal Nurse Consultants
- Legal Operations Specialists
- Legal Secretaries
- Litigation Support/eDiscovery Analysts
- Marine Biologists
- Mergers and Acquisitions Attorneys
- Methane/Landfill Gas Collection System Operators
- Methane/Landfill Gas Generation System Technicians
- Microbiologists
- Molecular and Cellular Biologists
- Museum Directors and Curators
- Mutual Fund Lawyers
- National Park Service Employees
- Naturalists
- Occupational Safety and Health Workers
- Oceanographers
- Paralegals
- Park Rangers
- Patent Agents
- Patent Lawyers
- Polygraph Examiners
- Process Servers
- Public Interest Lawyers
- Range Managers
- Real Estate Lawyers
- Recreation Workers
- Recycling and Reclamation Workers
- Recycling Coordinators
- Renewable Energy Careers
- Renewable Energy Engineers
- Rewilders
- Soil Conservationists and Technicians
- Soil Scientists
- Space Lawyers
- Tax Attorneys
- Wastewater Treatment Plant Operators and Technicians
- Water/Wastewater Engineers
- Wildland Firefighters
- Zoo and Aquarium Curators and Directors
- Zoologists
