Robert Fischman

Robert Fischman is the George P. Smith, II Distinguished Professor of Law and adjunct Professor of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University Bloomington's Maurer School of Law. A prominent scholar in the Law faculty with a focus on environmental law, he teaches Environmental Law, Administrative Law, Public Natural Resources Law, Water Law, Wildlife Law, and advanced seminars including biodiversity conservation policy and energy law. His research explores the relationship between law and conservation implementation, public land management, endangered species recovery, federalism in natural resources policy, adaptive conservation, climate change adaptation, and environmental impact analysis. Fischman holds an A.B. in Geological and Geophysical Sciences summa cum laude from Princeton University (1984), where he received the Sigma Xi Award, and M.S. and J.D. degrees from the University of Michigan (1987), earning the first Joseph L. Sax Award and election to the Order of the Coif.

Prior to joining IU in 1992 (Associate Professor, promoted to Professor in 1999), Fischman was Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Wyoming College of Law (1991-1992) and served at the Environmental Law Institute as Staff Attorney, Director of Natural Resources Program, and Acting Director of Inter-American Environmental Program (1988-1991). He has been Visiting Professor at Vermont Law School (2000), Lewis & Clark Law School (2001), and Université de Paris II (2019-2021), and Senior Research Scholar at Yale Law School (2001). Key publications include co-authoring Coggins & Wilkinson’s Federal Public Land and Resources Law (8th ed., 2022) and authoring The National Wildlife Refuges: Coordinating a Conservation System through Law (2003). Notable articles are 'A Landmark Environmental Law Looks Ahead' (Science, 2023, with J.B. Ruhl), 'Collaborative Governance under the Endangered Species Act' (Yale J. Reg., 2021), and 'Letting Go of Stability: Resilience and Environmental Law' (Ind. L.J., 2019), several ranked among top environmental law articles. Awards include Indiana University Teaching Excellence Recognition (1999) and American Law Institute election (2019). He co-founded the Environmental Resilience Institute (2017, $55 million grant), serves as founding board officer of the Conservation Law Center, Member Scholar of the Center for Progressive Reform, and has testified before Congress.

Professional Email: rfischma@iu.edu