McGowan will receive a $1,000 prize and publication in the March 2015 issue of VJEL for his winning paper titled "Locomotives v. Local Motives: The Coming Conflict, Statutory Void, and Legal Uncertainties Riding with Reactivated Rails-to-Trails."

The paper focuses on the legal challenges associated with rail trails, recreational paths converted from railways.

"Matthew’s article thoroughly impressed our review committee," said VJEL Editor-in-Chief Andrew Minikowski ’15. "The depth at which his article explores the legal ramifications of rails-to-trails reactivation far exceeds the existing academic literature on the topic. As Matthew’s article addresses a topic that is currently unbeknownst to many people, it will expose our readers to new legal issues and areas in which to advocate, which is the very mission of the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law."

McGowan drew inspiration for the paper from a personal interest in biking and professional interest in property law.

"Property rights today affect property rights decades down the line, even centuries," McGowan said. "That’s part of the reason I wrote about these unusual easements. I’m also an avid mountain biker … so when I started looking around for a topic, I picked something personally intriguing. I love bike trails. I think they represent the ideal balance between people and nature—a balanced coexistence. No words can quite encapsulate the feeling of pausing in the middle of nowhere and listening to only the sounds of the landscape."

"It dawned on me pretty early in the process that apparently nobody has really gone into any depth on the legal ramifications of railroad reactivation even though that was the whole point of rail-banking in the first place," said McGowan, referring to the voluntary agreements between rail companies and trail agencies to use out-of-service rail corridors as bike or walking trails until the railroad once again needs the corridors for service.

VJEL, the environmental law journal of Vermont Law School, home of the top-ranked environmental law program in the United States, is positioned to reach audiences on a global scale and affords students a unique opportunity to participate in current debates surrounding far-reaching environmental law and policy issues.

Any student currently pursuing a juris doctor (JD) or master of laws (LLM) degree at an accredited law school in the U.S. is eligible to participate in the annual competition. While only one winner is selected, additional submissions may receive offers of publication. For more information about the White River Environmental Law Writing Competition, including eligibility and judging criteria, visit vjel.vermontlaw.edu/writing-competition. For more information about the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law, visit vjel.vermontlaw.edu or email vjel@vermontlaw.edu.

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Vermont Law School, a private, independent institution, has the top-ranked environmental law program and one of the top-ranked clinical training programs in the nation, according to U.S. News & World Report. VLS offers a Juris Doctor curriculum that emphasizes public service; three Master’s Degrees—Master of Environmental Law and Policy, Master of Energy Regulation and Law, and Master of Food and Agriculture Law and Policy; and four post-JD degrees —LLM in American Legal Studies (for foreign-trained lawyers), LLM in Energy Law, LLM in Environmental Law, and LLM in Food and Agriculture Law. The school features innovative experiential programs and is home to the Environmental Law Center, the South Royalton Legal Clinic, and the Environmental and Natural Resources Law Clinic. For more information, visit www.vermontlaw.edu, find us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter.