The International Who’s Who of Environment Lawyers has brought together two of the leading practitioners in the world to discuss key issues facing lawyers today.

For many in the legal community, the financial crisis resulted in an end to the flow of repeat corporate business that would come through into the office. One group, however, that could be said to have regarded the disruption in the financial markets with more optimism than most, were litigators.

Theodore Garrett is the winner of the environment lawyer of the year for the seventh year running, meaning he has been the only recipient of the award since its inception in 2005.

As governments around the world look at various solutions to ensure low carbon growth, the development of commercially viable Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) has become a pressing concern for many.

We bring together four of the leading environmental lawyers to discuss regulatory changes, litigation, due diligence and other areas of work.

In this section we analyse the findings of our research in greater depth to identify the firms and practitioners who stand out worldwide.

This, the sixth edition of The International Who’s Who of Environment Lawyers, builds on our previous research into this discipline, combining tens of thousands of votes and comments from private practitioners and in-house lawyers around the world to give a detailed snapshot of the current state of the international environmental law market.

This edition features 687 environmental law experts in 41 jurisdictions and our independent research has identified these lawyers as the leaders in the field. We profile a number of internationally renowned individuals from our research.

Environmental law has never been so crucial. Increased awareness of climate change and recent environmental disasters in the Gulf of Mexico and north-eastern China are leading to new laws and regulations to protect the environment from potentially destructive human activity.

Lawyers are entering a "new age for environment law", says Robert Falk of Morrison & Foerster LLP.

We select almost 100 new names for the fourth edition of this book, due partly to the growing emphasis law firms are placing on the sector. Many of these practitioners were recognised by clients and peers for their expertise in the burgeoning area of climate change.

The Schwarzenegger administration leads the US in environmental policy-making.

As the international debate on how to tackle climate change rumbles on, the demands of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ)'s commitment to "clean air, clean water, and the safe management of waste" alongside "sustainable economic development" are becoming more complicated.

Environmental law is rapidly increasing in importance in Argentina. An ongoing conflict with Uruguay over papermills on the Uruguay River continues to shape the market and climate change is also finding its way into legislation, with alternative energy and bio-fuel production becoming more widespread. Government drives to improve water quality, reduce particulate matter and reduce greenhouse gas emissions have continued to increase the need for specialist environmental knowledge in the legal sector. Water quality has been at the forefront: the Supreme Court ruled that there must be a clean-up of the rivers to help to reduce the human impact upon the environment.

Illinois's environmental Bar has undergone something of a transition in the past 18 months. Of the 36 individuals featured in the previous edition three have chosen to move firms. Four further attorneys have left private practice altogether, one moving into government, another into industry and two retiring. These changes ensure that while some firms cannot point to such a deep bench of talent in the publication, others have either bolstered their showing on the following pages or make an appearance for the first time this year. Despite the various comings and goings, Illinois's environmental Bar remains in rude health. One can be sure that the individuals on the following pages are some of the nation's most respected practitioners, whether for transactional, litigation or regulatory matters.