Every year, the Delaware Valley Environmental American Inn of Court (DVEAIC) offers membership to a few students from Philadelphia law schools. This year, two Temple Law students, Seth Israel (LAW ‘26) and Su Ly (LAW ‘26), have been selected as student members of the DVEAIC.
Founded in 1996, the DVEAIC was the first Inn of Court in the United States to specialize in environmental law. The organization has monthly meetings that include a social hour followed by a Continuing Legal Education session. For law students, these meetings are an invaluable opportunity to network with a variety of environmental attorneys—including lawyers from private practice, public interest organizations, government agencies, and academia.
“The range of the environmental law profession is massive at DVEAIC, so I’m looking forward to getting to know everyone,” said Su. “I’m particularly excited to meet with my mentor and discuss pathways to environmental law in Philly.”
Seth is similarly excited to meet DVEAIC’s members.
“There’s a diversity of practices represented among the Inn, and I’m curious to see how perspectives and approaches vary from person to person,” said Seth.
Before becoming DVEAIC student members, Seth and Su were student leaders of Temple’s Environmental Law Society and served on the school’s Sustainability Committee. They have also taken a variety of environmental law courses and interned at several notable environmental organizations—including Vermont Law School’s Center for Food and Agriculture Systems and Fair Shake Environmental Legal Services.
As a 1L, Seth decided to pursue environmental law because he always spent a lot of time outdoors.
“Working on issues of conservation and environmental protection felt intuitive and personal,” said Seth. “I also wanted to be a part of the environmental law community because it’s filled with so many extremely thoughtful, passionate people.”
After working at the EPA and the National Audubon Society, Su came to Temple specifically to pursue environmental law.
“I’m extremely happy with my decision to come to Temple,” said Su. “I’m proud to be a part of the increasingly larger student population that is interested in pursuing environmental law.”
