I have taken Environmental Science classes and law school classes. This class FAILS as either. After 10 weeks, I am left wondering what was the point. This class went over 2 federal statutes which for practical field/real life experience would have no relevance. Statute review is not learning about policy, how it is made or how it is used or manipulated to forward or hinder the environmental law, justice or practical use in the real world. Simply said, you can look up any statute on the internet. What you can not look up is practical experience on how policy interacts with environment. It is important to understand how the law can work to protect the environment but also as a means to protect those who may have interests that counter the climate movement. It is important to understand how the system as a whole works in order to work within the system. Learning about 1 or 2 statues (that will ultimately change over the years) does not give the needed tools to work in a systematic environment where policy is a living breathing entity. Additionally, the Professor truly did a disservice to his students by having a undeniable bias. Never did this Professor give multiple arguments of Supreme Court decisions, case law, opinions in book but only taught through a very liberal point of view. As pro environmentalist, we all would like to see favorable outcomes that protect the environment but this does not equip us in the real world when we have to combat real opponents that do not have like minds. Our job at UCLA is to gain the tools to understand policy so that we can out maneuver those who want to destroy the environment, to learn ways on how to effectively use and write policy so that we can protect the environment. THIS CLASS FAILS COMPLETELY AT THIS TASK. This Professor seems to only have knowledge in the area in which he wrote a research paper years ago. I have doubts that he ever set foot in an actual courtroom as a lead attorney. He did not bring any practical work experience to the classroom. In fact, he presented his lectures like a U-Tube video. There was no interaction between students. Office hours were disorganized and impersonalized only dealing with administrative questions. He conducted a student run final review session in which the student had to come up with their own question AND answers. In short, this Professor is not qualified to teach at UCLA. He may have come from an academic background, however, UCLA students expect more form their Professors. They expect live classes (even during a pandemic, ever other Professor can do it), they expect to gain wisdom from their Professor's practical field experience and they expect to leave a class with the tools they need to go out in the world a get a job. This class left me with none. I have read some of the other reviews on the Professors and I believe he rates high because he inflates his grades. I was the highest marked student in this class in on both homework assignments and got an A on the midterm. But I didn't come to UCLA just to get good grades I came to learn the tools to be a responsible adult with tools to have gainful employment so I can make a difference in the world. This class was a waist of time and money.

TAKE THIS CLASS, amazing professor, learned a ton. I rarely write Bruinwalk reviews, but felt the need to for this class.

This was my favorite class I've taken at UCLA. Professor Boyd was the most engaging, clear, and well-articulated Professor I've ever had. His classes were thought-provoking and engaging without taking away from the amount of material covered. I feel like I learned so much about environmental policy and regulation through this class while thoroughly enjoying my time. Overall, if you have the chance to take this class, do it!

The class is structured based on two project exercises (15% each), a midterm (30%) and a final (40%). The project exercises are reading dense environmental regulation and answering questions, but you have a lot of explanation and help if you need it. Ask your TA for help if you haven't dealt with or cited legal text before. For exams, make sure you read the questions carefully and listen in class. The bulk of Prof. Boyd's slides don't have text, so you have to actively listen. But don't worry about this too much because the portions of the lectures without slides are really engaging so you'll retain the information anyway. The stuff he makes slides about is really important overall. While the texts sound required, the only ones you need to read are the court cases. Don't spend any money on the books, Prof. Boyd summarizes them in class.

I wouldn't say this class was easy (also note I didn't get an A), but it was my first exposure to anything in the legal/policy realm at all, and I loved it (I'm sure you haven't figured that out thus far LOL). I can't say enough good things about Environ 140, would 5/5 recommend.

UCLA is very lucky to have professor Boyd. He is such a passionate, engaging professor and it's really obvious that he is good at what he does (environmental law). The class itself is pretty chill in the sense that there isn't much work, but it definitely isn't an easy class. I don't fault Boyd for that, as environmental law can be difficult to grasp for undergrads who have never taken a law class before.
Your grade is made up of two homework assignments, one midterm, and one final.
For the homework, you have to read two statutes and answer some specific questions about them. The first statute assignment was really difficult, and many people did poorly. However, being the fair professor that he is, Professor Boyd made the second one a lot more doable, and there was even extra credit on it.
The midterm was tricky, and he made ours completely multiple choice. You really need to know your stuff, as there are so many little details about environmental law that you need to remember. Our midterm was only 40 questions, so you couldn't miss too many.
The final was mostly multiple choice, but there were also a few short answer questions. I found the short answer questions very fair, and some of them were kinda freebies (Rachel Carson questions, for example).
Boyd truly wants you to succeed, and if you are ever concerned about your grade, talk to him! Seriously, he will listen and actually take your concerns seriously. He is by far one of the most generous professors I have ever met or had at UCLA. I legit got a D- on the midterm and a C- on the final, as law is just something I struggle with. Straight scale, I had a C- in the class, but in the end I got a B-! Boyd bumped me up an entire 9 percent, which is insane, and I am so grateful to him. Seriously, I thought I was going to fail this class.
Even though this class is hard and I struggled, I would totally take it again, as Boyd is just that great. You won't regret taking this class!

By far my favorite class I have taken at UCLA so far! Professor Boyd is great and really cares about environmental law. While sometimes the content can seem boring, the case studies he brings in really make it more engaging. It is definetly the kind of class that you get out of it what you put in. I highly recommend going to his office hours and attending lectures. The midterm and final were not super difficult, but very specific to things he said in lecture so take detailed notes. The problem sets were more difficult so make sure to read carefully. Our TA Sid was also super helpful for these, as well as studying for the midterm and final.

Dr. Boyd is the best professor I have had at UCLA. He explains the concepts extremely well and I actually looked forward to his lectures. For content that appears boring at face value (laws and regulations, the professor somehow made lectures engaging and fun. Many students were inspired to pursue Environmental Law after this class. Exams and homework are straightforward. 10/10

I loved this class. Professor Boyd is a fantastic teacher and I genuinely enjoyed attending his lectures. I never missed a class except when I was sick, even though lecture attendance is not mandatory. As a person though, I went to Office Hours a lot and I found that Professor Boyd could be a bit condescending at times. I still would recommend going to OH because he'd give tips for the tests sometimes but just be sure to be very professional and tbh ask him about his work haha then he'll like you. He would answer questions during lecture but again sometimes he'd give off a bit of a condescending vibe if you asked a question or made a comment to add something to the discussion so be careful with that too.
Class structure was just the lectures, two Problem Sets, a midterm and a final. The First Problem Set wasn't "hard" per se, they just graded it so anally for no reason. Just make sure you are VERY specific in your answers and DO NOT add more material other than just what the question was asking, and check your work with friends in the class. They graded the second one more easily. The Midterm was good if you study (study the PPTs and your class notes), the Final was harder.
There's no discussion but the two TAs each have their own weekly OH. Our TAs Lorena and Emma were not helpful. They did not know our class material. OH was nice for getting to know them but if you have questions about material go to Boyd's OH he knows everything.
I would recommend reading the textbook as it is helpful for understanding the concepts and truly being prepared for the tests but you don't have to. The other readings were good too. I'm actually finishing the two books we read excerpts of because they're so good and informational.
Overall, good class, I'd recommend, would take again, you'll love Boyd, read go to OH and study for the tests. Gonna sell the books when I'm done reading them so text me if you need them or have Qs abt the class **********