Nick Schroeck, director of the Transnational Environmental Law Clinic, teaches the clinic, advanced clinic, Environmental Law and Energy Law Current Topics Seminar at Wayne State University Law School.
He also is executive director of the Great Lakes Environmental Law Center, a 501(c)(3) public interest environmental law organization that works in partnership with the clinic. Schroeck also serves as co-director of community outreach and engagement at the university's Center for Urban Responses to Environmental Stressors.
Schroeck has represented the Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, Environmental Law and Policy Center, Michigan Environmental Council, National Wildlife Federation, Detroiters Working for Environmental Justice, among others.
A graduate of Wayne Law, he also holds a bachelor of arts degree, cum laude, in urban studies and political science from Elmhurst College in Illinois.
By Sheila Pursglove
Legal News
What do you most enjoy about your job at GLELC?
I love the varied nature of the work. We get to practice in many areas of environmental law and to represent clients on policy as well as litigation.
What is the greatest threat to the Great Lakes?
Climate change.
What advice do you have for someone considering law school?
Seek out advice from friends, family members, and strangers who are practicing attorneys working in a field that you might be interested in. While in college maintain as high a GPA as possible, and study hard for the LSAT.
Favorite websites:
www.nytimes.com, www.freep.com, www.twitter.com, www.grist.org.
Favorite app:
Facebook probably gets the most use. I love the WDET FM app and the WRCJ FM app so that I can listen remotely to my favorite radio stations and catch up on shows and podcasts.
Favorite music:
For popular music I love classic rock and singer-songwriters. I also enjoy classical music. My wife and I regularly attend the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
What is your happiest childhood memory?
Canoeing and portaging the Two Hearted River.
What would surprise people about your job?
How much time I spend reviewing documents, spreadsheets, data sets.
What do you wish someone would invent?
Enormous grid-scale batteries to store renewable energy.
What has been your favorite year so far and why?
2007, the year Liz and I were married.
If you could trade places with someone for a day, who would that be?
My cat.
What is your most treasured material possession?
My charcoal grill/smoker.
What's the most awe-inspiring place you've ever been?
I've been very fortunate to travel to many beautiful places. It's a tie between the Alps and the Grand Canyon.
If you could have one super power, what would it be?
Flight.
What's your proudest moment as a lawyer?
It's a series of moments, working to stop new coal fired power plants in Michigan, while representing Sierra Club and Natural Resources Defense Council.
What do you do to relax?
Gardening, reading.
What other career path might you have chosen?
A city manager or urban planner.
What's one thing you would like to learn to do?
Proficiency in another language.
What is something most people don't know about you?
As a kid I was a pretty decent at horseback riding, including show jumping and eventing.
What's the best advice you ever received?
It's better to get a false start than a delay of game.
Favorite place to spend money:
On travel!
What is your motto?
Feed the good wolf.
Which living person do you most admire?
President Obama.
What do you consider to be your greatest achievement?
Having a great group of friends.
What is the most unusual thing you've done?
I caught a fair ball at the old Tiger Stadium.
Published: Wed, Nov 23, 2016
