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Jerry L. Anderson
Richard M. and Anita Calkins Distinguished Professor of Law
Dean 2016-2024
Expertise: Administrative Law, Environmental Law, Natural Resources Law, Property
Education
JD, Stanford Law School, Order of the Coif
BS, University of Kansas (with distinction)
Experience
- Drake Law School professor since 1991 (Dean, 2016-2024)
- Attorney, Lathrop & Norquist, Kansas City, Mo.
- Clerk, Hon. Alex Kozinski, U.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit
- Managing Attorney, Midwest Environmental Justice Advocates
Selected Publications
- Commons, Climate, and the Constitution, 71 Drake Law Review 255 (2025) (invited symposium paper).
- Property Law: Practice, Problems and Perspectives (co-author) (3d ed., Aspen Publishing, 2024).
- Environmental Law Practice: Problems and Exercises for Skills Development (co-author) (5th ed., Carolina Academic Press, 2025).
- Environmental Penalties: Discretion and Disparity, 42 Stanford Environmental Law Journal 1 (2023) (with A. Vaughan).
- Sailing the Stormy Seas: What I Learned About Deaning from Captain Aubrey, 51 University of Toledo Law Review 251 (2022).
- Devil in the Details: Structural Racism in Administrative Hearings, Yale Journal on Regulation, Symposium on Racism in Administrative Law (July 2020) (online).
- Neil Hamilton, Aldo Leopold, and the Ethics of Conservation, 24 Drake Journal of Agricultural Law 199 (2019).
Significant Accomplishments
- Member, American Law Institute
- Fellow, American Bar Foundation
- Fellow, American College of Environmental Lawyers
- Editorial Board, Environmental Law Review (Sage Press)
- Order of the Coif
- Leland Forrest Outstanding Professor (2006, 2013)
Biography
Early in his career, Professor Jerry Anderson co-authored an Environmental Law coursebook with an innovative approach - teaching students through the use of simulation exercises that require them to actually research and use the material to advise and represent clients. The book won two national awards; now in its fifth edition, it has been adopted across the country, in law schools such as Stanford, Berkeley, Columbia, and Georgetown. His second book takes a similarly practice-oriented approach to Property Law.
Professor Anderson's research has also broken new ground. His recent article on environmental penalties exposes deep disparity in the amount of fines across the country. His earlier work on zoning boards found that citizens appointed to bodies in control of land use decisions failed to represent a cross-section of the community and were typically biased in favor of developers. Through a series of articles, Professor Anderson became one of the country's foremost authorities on public access rights to private land. In addition, his thorough exploration and critique of Iowa's administrative rulemaking process has been cited by courts and commentators.
In addition to his environmental law practice before entering academia, Professor Anderson helped form the public interest law firm Midwest Environmental Justice Advocates, which litigated several important cases involving water quality, among others.
Anderson served as dean of Drake Law School for eight years, helping to improve student outcomes and leading the school to greater national prominence.
