FAMU Law alumnus wins Florida Bar’s environmental law writing competition

Michael Nichola, a 2013 graduate of the FAMU College of Law, won the annual Dean Frank Maloney Environmental Law Writing Competition, sponsored by the Environmental and Land Use Law Section (ELULS) of the Florida Bar. 

The competition was open to all law students at Florida's twelve law schools, and submissions addressed topics on environmental or land use law issues of concern to Florida.  The selection marks the first time any FAMU College of Law student placed in this prestigious writing competition.

Nichola's paper, "Takings of the Future: Sea Level Rise's Impact on Florida's Coastal Property Under Current Florida Law and Proposed Strategies for Adaptation," was the winning submission in this year's competition.  By winning, he will receive a cash prize, and his paper will be considered for publication in the Florida Bar Journal. Nichola prepared the winning paper in the Ocean and Coastal Law Seminar course, taught by College of Law Professor Randy Abate in Spring 2013.

Tia Crosby, a current third-year student at FAMU Law, received third place in the competition. She prepared her paper in the Advanced Topics in Environmental Law Seminar course, also taught by Abate in Fall 2012.

Both Nichola and Crosby were honored in August at an awards ceremony during the ELULS Annual Meeting at the Sawgrass Marriott in Ponte Vedra Beach.