Assistant Professor, University of Michigan Law School
About
Rachel Rothschild is an assistant professor of law at the University of Michigan Law School. Her scholarship sits at the intersection of environmental law, history, and policy. In 2025, Rothschild was named the Pace Haub School of Law Environmental Law Distinguished Junior Scholar.
Rothschild has written numerous articles and essays on pollution problems for academic journals and media outlets. She is the author of Poisonous Skies: Acid Rain and the Globalization of Pollution (University of Chicago Press, 2019) and is currently at work on a second book project that examines the history of environmental science and regulation. Her recent research has focused on the regulation of toxic substances, the history of the major questions doctrine, and the constitutionality of state climate superfund laws. In 2025, her article “The Origins of the Major Questions Doctrine” was selected as one of the top environmental law articles published in 2024.
Separately from her work at the University of Michigan Law School, Rothschild maintains an active pro bono practice and consults for environmental organizations. She is a member scholar at the Center of Progressive Reform and has submitted amicus briefs in litigation over greenhouse gas emission rules for power plants and toxic chemical regulations.
