
Professor Joel Eisen teaches and writes in the areas of energy law and policy, environmental law and policy, climate change, and the Smart Grid. He is a co-author of the leading law and business school textbook on energy law, Energy, Economics and the Environment: Cases and Materials, as well as numerous books, book chapters, treatises, and law review articles on electric utility regulation, renewable energy, and brownfields law and policy. Professor Eisen's scholarship has appeared in law journals at Harvard, Duke, Notre Dame, Fordham, Illinois, Wake Forest, and William & Mary Law Schools, among other venues. He was awarded the University of Richmond's Distinguished Educator Award in 2010, and his article "Residential Renewable Energy: By Whom?" was voted one of the four top environmental articles of 2011 by the Vanderbilt Law School and Environmental Law Institute. From 1993-2005, he was Director of the Robert R. Merhige, Jr., Center of Environmental Law. In 2009, Professor Eisen served as a Fulbright Professor of Law at the China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing, China.
COVID-19's Impact on Renewable Energy, Kansas Law Review (2021).
Energy Justice During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Vermont Journal of Environmental Law (2021).
Clean Energy Justice: Charting an Emerging Agenda, 43 Harvard Environmental Law Review 307 (with Shelley Welton) (2019).
Free Trade in Electric Power, 2018 Utah Law Review 49 (with Felix Mormann) (2018).
The New(Clear?) Electricity Federalism: Federal Preemption of States' "Zero Emissions Credit" Programs, 45 Ecology Law Quarterly Currents 149 (2018).
Demand Response's Three Generations: Market Pathways and Challenges in the Modern Electric Grid, 18 North Carolina Journal of Law & Technology 351 (2017).
Demand Response's Three Generations: Market Pathways and Challenges in the Modern Electric Grid, 18 North Carolina Journal of Law & Technology 351 (2017).
Duel Electricity Federalism Is Dead, but How Dead, and What Replaces It, 8 George Washington Journal of Energy and Environmental Law 3 (2017).
FERC v. EPSA and the Path to a Cleaner Electricity Sector, 40 Harvard Environmental Law Review Forum 1 (2016).
FERC's Expansive Authority to Transform the Electric Grid, 49 U.C. Davis Law Review 1783 (2016).
An Open Access Distribution Tariff: Removing Barriers to Innovation on the Smart Grid, 61 UCLA Law Review 1712 (2014).
Tackling Climate Change: Don't Forget Energy Efficiency, New York Law Journal (with Todd Aagaard) (2014).
Smart Regulation and Federalism for the Smart Grid, 37 Harvard Environmental Law Review 1 (2013).
Who Regulates the Smart Grid: FERC's Authority over Demand Response Compensation in Wholesale Electricity Markets, 4 San Diego Journal of Climate & Energy Law 69 (2013).
Distributed Energy Resources, "Virtual Power Plants," and the Smart Grid, 7 University of Houston Environmental & Energy Law & Policy Journal 191 (2012) (invited symposium issue).
Finality in Brownfields Remediation and Reuse, 41 Southwestern Law Review 773 (2012) (invited symposium issue).
China's Greentech Programs and the USTR Investigation, 11 Sustainable Development Law & Policy 3 (2011).
New Energy Geopolitics?: China, Renewable Energy, and the "Greentech Race", 86 Chicago-Kent Law Review 9 (2011).
Residential Renewable Energy: By Whom?, 31 Utah Environmental Law Review 339 (2011) (invited symposium issue; selected as one of the top four environmental law and policy articles of 2011 by the Environmental Law Institute and Vanderbilt University Law School).
Can Urban Solar become a "Disruptive" Technology?: The Case for Solar Utilities, 24 Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics and Public Policy 53 (2010).
China's Renewable Energy Law: A Platform for Green Leadership, 35 William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review 1 (2010) (invited symposium issue).
Brownfields Development: From Individual Sites to Smart Growth, Agenda For a Sustainable America (Environmental Law Institute) (2009).
Brownfields and BRAC: A Surprising Compatibility, 32 William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review 403 (2008).
Brownfields at 20: A Critical Reevaluation, 34 Fordham Urban Law Journal 721 (2007).
Rapanos, Carabell, and the Isolated Man, 40 University of Richmond Law Review 1099 (2006) (invited symposium issue).
Regulatory Linearity, Commerce Clause Brinksmanship, and Retrenchment in Electric Utility Deregulation, 40 Wake Forest Law Review 545 (2005) (invited article in dedicated issue on "Realizing the Promise of Electricity Deregulation").
The Blackout of 2003: What Is Next?, 39 University of Richmond Law Review 709 (2005) (symposium remarks).
The Environmental Responsibility of the Regionalizing Electric Utility Industry, 15 Duke Environmental Law & Policy Forum 295 (2005) (invited symposium issue).
The Trajectory of Normal after 9/11: Trauma, Recovery and Post-Traumatic Societal Adaptation, 14 Fordham Environmental Law Journal 499 (2003) (invited symposium issue).
A Case Study of Sustainable Development: Brownfields, 32 Environmental Law Reporter 10-420 (2002).
Practice, Policy, and Pedagogy in a Mandatory Environmental Law Course, 123 Water, Air, & Soil Pollution 409 (2000).
Brownfields Policies for Sustainable Cities, 9 Duke Environmental Law & Policy Forum 187 (1999).
From Stockholm to Kyoto and Back to the United States: International Environmental Law's Effect on Domestic Law, 32 University of Richmond Law Review 1435 (1999).
Are We Ready for Mediation in Cyberspace, 1998 Brigham Young University Law Review 1305 (1998).
"Brownfields of Dreams?": Challenges and Limits of Voluntary Cleanup Programs and Incentives, 1996 University of Illinois Law Review 883 (1996).
Policy in the Wake of the Incident, 29 University of Richmond Law Review 521 (with Gerald McCarthy et al.) (1995).
Toward a Sustainable Urbanism: Lessons from Federal Regulation of Urban Stormwater Runoff, 48 Washington University Journal of Urban and Contemporary Law 1 (1995).
Antitrust Reform for Joint Production Ventures, 30 Jurimetrics Journal 253 (1990).
Recent Developments in Housing and Community Development, 15 Urban Lawyer 858 (with Barbara Sarshik et al.) (1983).
Advanced Introduction to Law and Renewable Energy (Edward Elgar Publishing) (2021).
Advanced Introduction to Renewable Energy (Edward Elgar Publishing) (2020).
Energy, Economics and the Environment: Cases and Materials University Casebook Series (Foundation Press 5th ed.) (Emily Hammond et al., eds.) (December 2019).
Energy, Economics and the Environment: Cases and Materials University Casebook Series (Foundation Press 4th ed.) (Emily Hammond et al., eds.) (2015).
Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Measures in the United States Electric Power Industry Research Handbook on Climate Change Mitigation Law (Edward Elgar Publishing) (2015).
Energy, Economics and the Environment: Cases and Materials University Casebook Series (Foundation Press 3rd ed.) (Fred Bosselman et al., eds.) (2010).
Energy, Economics and the Environment: Cases and Materials University Casebook Series (Foundation Press 2nd ed.) (Fred Bosselman et al., eds.) (2006).
Structuring Commercial Real Estate Workouts: Alternatives to Foreclosure (Wolters Kluwer 2d) (with W. Berryhill et al.) (1999).
Aggregation of Distributed Energy Resources in the United States: Current Uses and Potential For More Widespread Deployment, in European Energy Law Report 13 (Intersentia) (January 2020).
Smart Grid Standards Development and Patent Protection in the United States: Striking the Balance Between Dramatic Overhaul of the Electric Grid and Encouragement of Innovation, in IP and Sustainable Markets (Edward Elgar Publishing) (with Kristen Osenga) (2019).
Linking Legal Framework Design and Risk Theory to Consumer Acceptance of the Smart Grid, in Smart Grid Law and Policy (Seoul National University School of Law) (with Emily Hammond) (2017).
Demand Response in Wholesale Markets, in Delivering Energy Law and Policy in the EU and the US: A Reader (Edinburgh University Press ) (2016).
Introduction: Themes in Energy Law, in Energy, Economics and the Environment: Cases and Materials (Foundation Press) (2015).
Stigmatized Sites and Urban Brownfields Redevelopment, in The Oxford Handbook of Land Economics (Oxford University Press) (2015).
International Standards For the Smart Grid, in Smart Grid Law and Policy (Seoul National University) (2014).
Energy and Environmental Law, in Perspectives on American Law (Peking University Press) (2013).
Energy Industries – Renewables, in China, India, and East and Southeast Asia: Assessing Sustainability, Encyclopedia of Sustainability (Berkshire Publishing) (2012).
Sustainability Strategies For Urban Brownfields Redevelopment, in Acting as if Tomorrow Matters: Accelerating the Transition to Sustainability (Environmental Law Institute) (2012).
Utilities Regulation, in The Law and Politics of Sustainability, Encyclopedia of Sustainability (Berkshire Publishing) (2011).
A Case Study of Sustainable Development: Brownfields, in Stumbling Toward Sustainability (Environmental Law Institute) (2002).
Alternative Dispute Resolution at the Environmental Protection Agency, in Federal Administrative Dispute Resolution Deskbook for Practitioners (American Bar Association Section of Administrative Law & Regulatory Practice) (2001).
Practice, Policy, and Pedagogy in a Mandatory Environmental Law Course, in Environmental Challenges (Springer) (with Michael Wolf) (2000).
Tenancy in Common, Tenancy in Partnership, and Tenancy in Coparcenary, in Powell on Real Property (2000).
Review - The Electric Battery, 34 Energy Research & Social Science 141 (2017).
Books: A Guide to Chinese Eco-Law, China Dialogue (July 2011).
Sino-American Relations: Environmental Protection & Climate Change: A Framework For Discussion, Sino-American Relations Workshop (The Fulbright Program, Hopkins-Nanjing Center, Fudan University) (May 2009).
A Critique of the Regulations Revising the U.S. Clean Air Act's New Source Review Program, Proceedings of the 13th World Clean Air and Environmental Protection Congress (August 2004).
Alternative Dispute Resolution In American Environmental Conflicts: A Framework For Analysis And Application To Environmental Protection In Israel, VI(A) Proceedings of the Sixth International Conference 321 (Israel Society for Ecology & Environmental Quality Sciences) (1996).
The Supreme Court's New Electricity Federalism, Daily Environment Report B-1 (May 2016).
Amicus Curiae Brief of Interested Energy Law Scholars in Support of the Petitioners (FERC v. Electric Power Supply Association) (with Richard Pierce et al.) (2015).
Structuring Commercial Real Estate Workouts: Alternatives to Foreclosure Supplement (Wolters Kluwer) (with W. Berryhill et al.) (1998).
SCC to reconsider its denial of higher rates for Appalachian Power (The Roanoke Times)
Wed., Dec. 16, 2020
Power Play: Inside the Dominion lobbying blitz that's going to raise your electric bills (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
Fri., Oct. 9, 2020
FERC To Take On Carbon Pricing's Place In Power Markets (Law360)
Tue., Sep. 29, 2020
Landmark court ruling could spur FERC 'sea change' (E&E News - Premium)
Wed., Jul. 1, 2020
Pa. Nuke Bailout Bill Fuels Political Fight With Gas Sector (Law360)
Tue., Mar. 19, 2019
UR professor is energy law scholar (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
Sun., Feb. 10, 2019
McNamee won't recuse himself from resilience debates unless they 'closely resemble' coal bailout (Utility Dive)
Tue., Jan. 8, 2019
Senate confirms McNamee, and challenges await (EnergyWire)
Fri., Dec. 7, 2018
Trump taps regulatory czar Neomi Rao for Kavanaugh's DC Circuit slot (S&P Global)
Wed., Nov. 14, 2018
Chatterjee takes reins as McIntyre steps down (EnergyWire)
Thu., Oct. 25, 2018
Shake-up at energy regulator raises specter of coal bailout (Bloomberg)
Wed., Oct. 24, 2018
Kavanaugh on FERC: Keg half full (RTO Insider)
Sun., Oct. 7, 2018
Commission - not staff - should've decided EQT pipeline, democrats say (Bloomberg Law)
Thu., Aug. 30, 2018
Likely energy regulator nominee was advocate for coal bailout (Bloomberg Environment)
Thu., Aug. 9, 2018
Kavanaugh pick threatens EPA policies, FERC authority, lawyers say (Utility Dive)
Wed., Jul. 11, 2018
FERC: 3-2 decision rejects PJM capacity market fixes (EnergyWire)
Mon., Jul. 2, 2018
PJM market ruling could impact states' clean energy plans (Bloomberg Environment)
Mon., Jul. 2, 2018
Kennedy's exit is big for environmental law. Energy law? Meh (EnergyWire)
Fri., Jun. 29, 2018
Powelson exit may cause policy logjam at FERC (Law360)
Fri., Jun. 29, 2018
Powelson to leave FERC deadlocked on gas pipelines, grappling with resilience (Utility Dive)
Fri., Jun. 29, 2018
Powelson leaving FERC to head water lobby (RTO Insider)
Thu., Jun. 28, 2018
Why Trump is going national with bid to save coal, nuclear (Washington Examiner)
Tue., Jun. 26, 2018
What a coal bailout could look like in the U.S. and Wyoming (Wyoming Public Media)
Fri., Jun. 15, 2018
What Trump's "unprecedented" power plant bailout would mean for the Ohio Valley (WV Public Broadcasting)
Mon., Jun. 11, 2018
Trump's energy blitz and the legal showdown to come (EnergyWire)
Fri., Jun. 8, 2018
FERC could have role in Trump's plan for coal, nuclear (GreenWire)
Tue., Jun. 5, 2018
How Trump's 'Soviet-style' coal directive would upend power markets (Utility Dive)
Mon., Jun. 4, 2018
The real barrier to Trump's coal bailout? His own appointees (Bloomberg)
Fri., Jun. 1, 2018
Trump orders a lifeline for struggling coal and nuclear plants (The New York Times)
Fri., Jun. 1, 2018
Trump orders coal, nuke bailout, citing national security (RTO Insider)
Fri., Jun. 1, 2018
Trump orders DOE to halt coal, nuclear retirements (GreenWire)
Fri., Jun. 1, 2018
Trump subverts FERC with coal, nuke plant bailout order (Law360)
Fri., Jun. 1, 2018
State-Federal rift pushes power markets to breaking point (Law360)
Thu., May. 10, 2018
Bids for emergency grid order are opened for public comment (GreenWire)
Wed., Apr. 11, 2018
Trump push to shorten gas pipeline reviews may limit public input (Bloomberg Environment)
Wed., Apr. 11, 2018
Legal morass threatens to put FirstEnergy request on ice (E&E News)
Tue., Apr. 10, 2018
Perry position on FES request for PJM emergency order complicated by Trump comment (Platts)
Fri., Apr. 6, 2018
FirstEnergy asks DOE for emergency action to save PJM coal, nuke plants (Utility Dive)
Thu., Mar. 29, 2018
FirstEnergy asks DOE for emergency coal, nuclear bailout (PV Magazine)
Thu., Mar. 29, 2018
FirstEnergy urges DOE to force coal, nuke plant payments (Law360)
Thu., Mar. 29, 2018
Utility requests DOE order to rescue power plants (GreenWire)
Thu., Mar. 29, 2018
The battery will kill fossil fuels - it's only a matter of time (Bloomberg Technology)
Thu., Mar. 8, 2018
The 'stealth NOPR?' PJM CEO says market reforms are no bailout for coal (Utility Dive)
Thu., Mar. 1, 2018
FERC advancing clean energy despite Trump's fossil focus (Law360)
Fri., Feb. 23, 2018
Agency pushes back on reports of coal bailout (GreenWire)
Fri., Feb. 9, 2018
Trump administration is weighing emergency aid for some coal plants (Bloomberg Politics)
Thu., Feb. 8, 2018
'FERC did its job:' Former regulators, lawyers laud DOE NOPR rejection (UtilityDive)
Tue., Jan. 9, 2018
Critics slam Perry after FERC blocks his 'crazy Hail Mary' (GreenWire)
Tue., Jan. 9, 2018
US Regulators reject Trump's plan to subsidise coal & nuclear (Metering & Smart Energy International)
Tue., Jan. 9, 2018
FERC nixes Perry's plan to pay coal, nuke plants (Law360)
Mon., Jan. 8, 2018
US regulators reject subsidy plan for coal and nuclear power plants (Financial Times)
Mon., Jan. 8, 2018
5 battles to watch in 2018 (E&E News)
Fri., Jan. 5, 2018
Chatterjee pans 'hyperbolic' reaction to his interim NOPR pitch (Utility Dive)
Thu., Nov. 16, 2017
What does the general public think about Perry's grid plan? (GreenWire)
Fri., Oct. 27, 2017
Energy bid to support coal, nuke plants called illegal (Bloomberg BNA)
Tue., Oct. 24, 2017
Regional operators' rebuke of Perry plan may sway FERC (Law360)
Tue., Oct. 24, 2017
Rick Perry's plan to subsidize coal and nuclear plants is bonkers (Vox)
Wed., Oct. 4, 2017
Perry calls on FERC to dismantle U.S. energy markets (EnergyWire)
Mon., Oct. 2, 2017
US delivers electric shock with coal and nuclear subsidy plan (Financial Times)
Sun., Oct. 1, 2017
Perry's FERC grid pricing plan would roil energy markets (Law360)
Fri., Sep. 29, 2017
Ill. nuke subsidy ruling boosts states' clean energy push (Law360)
Mon., Jul. 17, 2017
Energy cases to watch in 2nd half of 2017 (Law360)
Fri., Jun. 16, 2017
State clean power policies seen as touch to upend (Law360)
Tue., May. 9, 2017
Perry's vision of a powerful federal role has its limits (EnergyWire)
Thu., Apr. 27, 2017
Trump upends a strategy to paint nuclear neon green (Energywire)
Mon., Nov. 21, 2016
Trump presidency won't be a red light for green energy (Law360)
Thu., Nov. 10, 2016
NY nuke plant subsidies will likely face legal battle (Law360)
Tue., Aug. 2, 2016
FERC scores again as high court knocks down Md. program (Greenwire)
Tue., Apr. 19, 2016
High court power subsidy ruling keeps states in the dark (Law360)
Tue., Apr. 19, 2016
Garland could be agency ally in energy, enviro rules fights (Law360)
Wed., Mar. 16, 2016
Trio of Supreme Court cases could electrify U.S. energy markets (Voice of America)
Mon., Feb. 29, 2016
Justices appear convinced state subsidy enters FERC turf (Bloomberg BNA)
Thu., Feb. 25, 2016
Supreme Court set to hear state-federal power market jurisdiction case (Utility Dive)
Wed., Feb. 24, 2016
Supreme Court to assess if FERC preempts subsidy program (Bloomberg BNA)
Tue., Feb. 23, 2016
Supreme Court to hear major grid case without Scalia (Greenwire)
Mon., Feb. 22, 2016
High court stay could spell doom for EPA's Clean Power Plan (Law360)
Wed., Feb. 10, 2016
Supreme Court's FERC opinion offers cluse about next big case (Greenwire)
Tue., Jan. 26, 2016
The word from SCOTUS: FERC has the DR authority (Intelligent Utility)
Mon., Jan. 25, 2016
High court split over limits of FERC power demand authority (Law360)
Wed., Oct. 14, 2015
Power grab? Court to weigh mandate for incentives to use less electricity during peak demand (The Washington Times)
Thu., May. 28, 2015
Supreme Court to hear major energy law federalism case (CPR Blog)
Wed., May. 6, 2015
Calling for open access distribution tariff, law professor looks to telecom models (SNL)
Mon., Sep. 29, 2014
Could a new tax save the smart grid? This expert thinks so (Smart Grid News)
Wed., Sep. 10, 2014
China's Fast Path to Green Tech (The Tyee [Canada])
Tue., Nov. 27, 2012
Congress Sinks Biofuel's Hopes For US Military Boost (Law360)
Thu., May. 31, 2012