Recent Graduates Publish Article in Noted Environmental Law Journal

Two recent graduates from the law class of 2019 have a recently published a peer-reviewed article in The Environmental Law Reporter, a noted and well-respected academic journal in the area of environmental law.  The article entitled “Sources to Sinks: Expanding a National CO2 Pipeline Network,” was researched and penned by Jada Garofalo and Madeleine Lewis. Their piece examines the growing demand of carbon dioxide as a market commodity following the boom of enhanced oil recovery, and explores possibilities for carbon dioxide transportation infrastructure.

The project was spearheaded by Professor Tara Righetti of the College of Law, a leading scholar on carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration. Righetti has previously published on CO₂ pipelines, and sourced a substantial grant from a private foundation that funded the research for Garofalo and Lewis. A champion for developing funded research and publication opportunities for students, Righetti supervised the writing and aided with research on the project.

Both Garofalo and Lewis are skilled writers and have successfully published other works during their law school careers and immediately afterwards. In October 2019, Garofalo published an article entitled “Toward Holism: Aligning the Science and Policy of Recovery Planning for the Endemic Fishes in the Upper Colorado River Basin“ in Environs, the Environmental Law and Policy Journal of the UC Davis School of Law.

In a collaborative project with Righetti, Lewis co-authored “The Oil and Gas Lease, Part II: The Royalty Clause in an Oil and Gas Lease,” which was presented at the University of Texas School of Law 2019 Fundamentals of Oil, Gas and Mineral Law Conference. Additionally, Lewis took her research internationally and co-authored an article with Eduardo Pereira, a Professor of Natural Resources and Energy Law at Externado University of Colombia. Their article “Conditions Precedent in Farmout Agreements – An Overview,” was published in the Journal of International Review of Law at Qatar University.

During their law school careers, Garofalo and Lewis were impressive students and successful in many endeavors in the areas of energy and natural resources and legal writing.

Garofalo served as the student director for the Center for Law and Energy Resources in the Rockies (CLERR), worked in the Energy, Environmental & Natural Resources (EENR) Clinic, and interned with the Criminal Division of the United States Attorney’s Office in Cheyenne. The internship ultimately led to her arguing a case before the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals as a third-year law student.

A joint degree student, Lewis concurrently earned her law degree along with a master’s degree in Environment and Natural Resources. While in school, she worked as a research assistant for Professor Righetti, providing valuable assistance on several projects, including research on carbon dioxide pipeline siting regulations, and surface use agreements for wind and oil & gas developers. She also traveled to Brazil to attend the RMMLF course on international mining law. She was recognized as the Salt Creek Energy Excellence Scholar for 2018-2019, was the recipient of the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation Scholarship, was a Brimmer Scholarship finalist, and was an Article Editor on the Editorial Board of the Wyoming Law Review.

Both women are currently utilizing their research and writing abilities as law clerks. Jada Garofalo is a clerk in the Superior Court of the Third Judicial District of Alaska for the Honorable Herman Walker. Madeleine Lewis is a clerk in the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming for the Honorable Nancy Freudenthal.