Kent alumnus Ben Stansfield delivered a talk on ‘An environmental lawyer’s soundtrack’ for LLM students as part of Kent Law School’s Environmental Law Seminar Series.
Ben (who graduated in 1999) is currently a partner and Head of Environmental Law at Stephenson Harwood in London. He is also involved with UKELA (the UK Environmental Law Association) where he has spent eight years as a trustee (with three of these years spent as Vice Chair).
Ben’s talk on Monday 29 October took Kent LLM students through his journey from the time he left the University of Kent to the present day. He spoke about the role of an environmental lawyer, pointing out what environmental lawyers can do in terms of civil law (Transactions), criminal law (Litigation) and public law (Regulatory Advice). He also talked about a particular case study involving the North London Heat and Power Project, an Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) generating 70MW of electricity using residual waste.
As a member of Stephenson Harwood’s Graduate Recruitment Panel, Ben also shared some top tips for success in securing training contracts. He advised students that it was important to: get good grades; network; keep in touch; get legal experience; be interested (as well as interesting) in an interview; show some passion and excitement; and to have ‘something different’ to help them succeed in obtaining the contract.
Ben’s talk helped attendees gain a more practical perspective on careers within the environmental law field. It was a useful overview of a broad range of environmental law policies and a helpful insight into practicing law in general. It was indeed a privilege to attend the seminar and we are grateful to Ben for ‘coming back and giving back’.
Kent LLM Student Siwat Pornchai
Environmental law at Kent
Environmental law is a recognised and long-established area of teaching and research expertise at Kent Law School. Academics, including Professor William Howarth and Dr Martin Hedemann-Robinson, are engaged in research across a number of areas of environmental law, with research spanning international, European and national law and policy. The Law School’s Environmental Law Seminar Series has been designed specifically for LLM (Master’s in Law) students with an interest in the environmental law modules offered at Kent.
Kent LLM students can graduate on the International Environmental Law and Policy pathway by (i) opting to study at least three (out of six) modules from those associated with the pathway of their choice and by (ii) focusing the topic of their dissertation on their chosen pathway. Students can also study environmental law in combination with other areas offered by the Law School.
A record of previous talks held as part of the Law School Environmental Law Seminar Series is available on our news blog.