Want honored as top environmental lawyer

SEPT. 4, 2009 - Charleston School of Law Associate Professor William Want has been named one the nation's most distinguished environmental attorneys by Best Lawyers, a major lawyer-rating directory.

"Special congratulations are in order as you are one of a distinguished group of attorneys who have now been listed in Best Lawyers for 20 years or longer," wrote Steven Naifeh, president and founder of Best Lawyers, in a letter notifying Want of the honor.

Want's treatise, Law of Wetlands Regulation, published by West, is the most relied upon text on the subject. He is also a co-author of a book on hazardous wastes and the author of numerous environmental law articles.

Before joining the law school faculty, Want served as a sole practitioner in Charleston, where he focused on complex environmental litigation.  Previously, he was a senior litigation counsel at the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the U.S. Justice Department.

He also has taught as an adjunct professor at George Washington Law School and as a visitor at Maryland Law School.  Want is a founding board member of two major environmental organizations: the Southern Environmental Law Center and the S.C. Coastal Conservation League.

Want received his law degree from Yale Law School and graduated summa cum laude in economics with a bachelor's degree from Washington and Lee University.  He is a past winner of the Lyndhurst Foundation Award of $120,000 for his contributions to environmental protection.

CONTACT:  Andy Brack at 843.670.3996