Areas of Concentration
Administrative Practice
Primary Contact: Professor Ron Beal
Administrative regulation at the
state and federal level has grown into a massive patchwork of more than 400
Texas and federal agencies. This concentration is designed to provide
students with a broad-based exposure to the concepts, topics and skills that
are vital to practitioners who work for or before governmental agencies.
It is impossible to cover the substantive law of all agencies and thus,
after completion of the required courses, a student is allowed to
concentrate in one specific area or obtain a broad-based exposure through
the selection of electives. The course entitled Business and State Issues in
Environmental Law is required because it exposes all students to common and
practical issues arising in the regulatory process that have similar
application to all major regulatory agencies.
After completion of the required courses, the student selects a topic for
independent study related to either environmental law or the substantive law
of a major federal or state agency. The capstone consists of an externship
at a government agency, generally a Texas agency in Austin. The student is
exposed to the day-to-day workings of an agency and works closely with
administrative officers and employees. Additionally, the students are
supervised by Professor Walt Shelton, our part-time faculty member who
resides in Austin.
After taking the required classes, those students choosing to concentrate in
Administrative Practice complete the following courses:
Administrative Law Externship
Independent Study
Local Government, Constitutional and Federal Liabilities
State and Business Issues in Environmental Law
And take one of the Following:
Federal Administrative Law
Texas Administrative Law
Administrative Practice students also complete at least one of the following
elective courses:
Banking Law
Employment Discrimination
Employment Relations
Environmental Law
Health Care Law
Insurance Law
Labor Law
Municipal Government
Natural Resources
Oil and Gas Law
Patent Law & Drafting
Securities Regulation