On October 18, 2011, Environmental Law & Policy Clinic student Rachel Heron (JD ’12) presented a 3-hour oral argument on a motion for summary decision in an important, precedent-setting administrative proceeding concerning the right of renewable energy companies to conduct business and install solar photovoltaic systems in Massachusetts. The companies are being challenged by the Board of State Examiners of Electricians, which takes the position that only licensed electricians may advertise and orchestrate work that entails electrical components. Ms. Heron is the third Clinic student to argue a motion in this important set of three related cases.
Previously, Nicholas McDaniel (JD ’11) and Thomas Brugato (JD ’11) argued motions in the Superior Court case Carroll v. Board of State Examiners of Electricians, in which the Clinic filed suit on behalf of six plaintiffs to challenge the Board’s action as being inconsistent with the electrical licensing statute as well as a de facto regulation improperly adopted without notice and comment. In July 2011, Superior Court Justice Janet Sanders denied the Attorney General’s motion to dismiss. Next month, Devin O’Connor (JD ’12) will argue the Clinic’s pending motion for summary judgment in Suffolk County Superior Court.