Nils Courcy is a juristat ClientEarth, where he uses legal tools, strategic advocacy and litigation to help protect the ocean and marine wildlife. His work sits at the intersection of environmental law, fisheries policy, science and public decision-making, drawing on earlier experience at the European Commission and with environmental NGOs. His career shows how legal expertise can be used to turn environmental protections on paper into practical action, and how resilience, collaboration and strategic thinking shape this kind of work.
Role: Jurist
Organisation type: NGO / nonprofit
Country / region: Brussels / Europe
Role type: Legal specialist
Focus areas: Law; Policy and governance; Fisheries; Conservation; Stakeholder engagement
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Your current role
What is your current role and what kind of organization do you work for?
I am a jurist at ClientEarth, an environmental organisation that uses the law to protect nature, tackle climate change, and hold governments and companies accountable for their environmental commitments. My work focuses on protecting the ocean and marine wildlife. I use legal tools to help ensure that laws designed to protect marine ecosystems are properly applied and enforced, and I work with partners, decision-makers and communities to turn legal protections on paper into real protection for the ocean.
What does a typical week look like?
There is no real "typical week" in my job, which is one of the things I enjoy most about it. As a lawyer working to protect the ocean, my work is highly varied and combines legal expertise with strategic advocacy and project management.
In a given week, I may spend time conducting legal research, analysing new laws and policies, or drafting legal arguments to support court cases and other advocacy efforts. I work closely with a wide range of partners, including environmental organisations, journalists, lawyers, consultants, academics and scientific experts, to build strong cases and maximise our impact.
My work also involves investigations, developing litigation strategies, preparing legal submissions, and sometimes attending court hearings or meetings with public authorities and decision-makers. I regularly deliver trainings, share legal expertise with partners, and help strengthen the capacity of others working to protect the environment.
Beyond legal work, we often organise events, workshops and conferences to showcase our work, share knowledge and experience, and foster dialogue with judges, academics, government institutions, journalists and civil society organisations.
Travel is also part of my role, although I am systematically avoiding non necessary work travels. I may travel to attend hearings, participate in conferences, conduct fact-finding missions, meet partners, or engage with policymakers and stakeholders in different countries.
Everything I do is geared towards achieving meaningful, long-term change. Whether through the courts, policy engagement, partnerships or public awareness, my goal is to help address the root causes of environmental problems and contribute to systemic change. While my work is primarily legal in nature, it often requires strategic thinking, coordination across multiple stakeholders, and the management of complex projects aimed at delivering real-world impact.
What skills do you use most often in your role, including any technical, practical, or soft skills?
Technical Skills:
My work requires a strong understanding of international and European law, as well as the policies, institutions and decision-making processes that shape ocean and environmental governance. I specialise in fisheries, marine and maritime, and environmental law, with a particular focus on the implementation and enforcement of the European Union's Common Fisheries Policy. A key part of my role is navigating complex legal and regulatory frameworks and identifying how the law can be used most effectively to deliver real-world environmental change.
Much of my work involves conducting in-depth legal research, analysing legislation, policy and case law, and developing robust legal arguments that can withstand scrutiny from courts, public authorities and opposing parties. Litigation is an important aspect of my role, requiring skills in case strategy, evidence assessment, legal drafting and preparation for hearings and other legal proceedings.
Because environmental challenges rarely fit neatly within a single discipline, my work often sits at the intersection of law, science and public policy. This means I need to understand and assess scientific evidence, engage with technical experts, and translate complex scientific and regulatory information into clear, persuasive and legally sound arguments. Ultimately, my role is about combining legal expertise, analytical thinking and strategic judgment to help ensure that environmental laws are properly implemented and effectively enforced.
Practical Skills:
Beyond legal expertise, the role requires a broad set of practical skills. Managing strategic litigation or advocacy projects often means coordinating multiple stakeholders across different countries and disciplines. On any given project, I may be working with environmental organisations, scientists, academics, journalists, consultants and external lawyers. This requires strong organisation, planning and project management skills, as well as the ability to balance competing priorities and tight deadlines. Effective communication is also critical, whether I am drafting a legal brief, delivering a training session, speaking at a conference, engaging with policymakers or explaining complex issues to a non-specialist audience.
Analytical and Strategic Thinking:
A large part of the role involves combining rigorous analysis with strategic thinking. It is not enough to identify what the law says; I must determine how legal tools can be used to achieve the greatest possible impact. This means understanding the wider political, economic and social context in which legal issues arise and identifying opportunities to drive systemic change. Often, success depends on choosing the right legal argument, the right forum, the right partners and the right timing.
Interpersonal and Influence Skills:
Much of our work depends on collaboration and the ability to bring different people together around a common objective. This requires strong relationship-building skills and the ability to work effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders, from fellow lawyers and scientists to journalists, judges, government officials and civil society organisations. Persuasion is a key part of the role. Whether in court, in meetings with decision-makers or when speaking publicly, I need to communicate clearly, build credibility and convince others of the strength of our position.
Personal Qualities:
Perhaps more than anything else, this work requires a particular mindset. Resilience is probably the quality I rely on most. Working on environmental issues means spending a lot of time looking at problems that are, frankly, not always the most uplifting: biodiversity loss, declining marine ecosystems, climate change, and the many pressures facing the natural world. It is easy to feel the weight of these challenges, especially when the science is clear and the pace of change can seem frustratingly slow.
On top of that, the work often involves trying to shift systems that are not naturally inclined to move quickly. Environmental protection frequently comes up against powerful economic, political and institutional interests, each with their own priorities.
Achieving meaningful change therefore requires a great deal of perseverance. Strategic litigation can take years to reach a judgment, and even a successful court victory does not automatically translate into real-world change the next day. There are setbacks, disappointments and moments when things appear to be moving at glacial speed. Patience is not just useful in this line of work; it is practically a professional requirement.
At the same time, resilience is about much more than simply hanging on. It means staying motivated and constructive when progress is uncertain, adapting when circumstances change, and being willing to rethink a strategy when the original one is no longer the best path forward. Political developments, court decisions and unexpected opportunities can all reshape the landscape overnight, so flexibility and adaptability are essential.
Creativity also plays a surprisingly important role. Many environmental problems are deeply entrenched, which means that standard approaches are not always enough. Finding innovative legal arguments, identifying strategic opportunities, building unusual alliances, or approaching a problem from a completely different angle often makes the difference between a good idea and a successful campaign.
Alongside this, professional rigour and attention to detail remain fundamental. Environmental cases are often legally and scientifically complex, and credibility depends on getting the details right. Strong analytical skills and sound judgment are essential, but so is the ability to step back and think strategically about how a particular case or project fits into a broader movement for change.
What makes this work sustainable is that no one does it alone. Collaboration is a huge part of the job. Working with passionate colleagues, partner organisations, scientists, journalists, academics and lawyers creates a sense of shared purpose and reminds you that progress is usually the result of collective effort. Celebrating small wins (and failures!) along the way, while keeping an eye on the bigger picture, is often what keeps momentum going.
Ultimately, this work requires a balance between realism and optimism. Realism about the scale of the challenges and the obstacles ahead, but optimism that change is possible through persistence, smart strategy and collective action. A strong sense of purpose helps enormously. When you are trying to contribute, even in a small way, to protecting something as vast and important as the ocean, you learn that lasting change is rarely quick or straightforward, but that is precisely what makes it worth pursuing.
In summary, my role combines the analytical rigour of a lawyer, the strategic mindset of an advocate, the coordination skills of a project manager, the creativity of a problem-solver and the resilience of someone working towards long-term change. Success depends as much on technical legal expertise as on the ability to collaborate, adapt, persuade and remain committed to a vision of lasting environmental impact.
Every job has a best part and a worst part. What are they for you?
The best part of my job is, without question, the feeling that my work contributes, in however modest a way, to making the world a little better for future generations. There is something deeply rewarding about working on issues that matter, knowing that the effort invested today can help protect nature, support communities, and shape a more sustainable future. I also feel incredibly fortunate to work in such a rich and stimulating environment. Every day brings new challenges, new ideas and new perspectives. Much of my inspiration comes from the people I work with. I am constantly surrounded by passionate, talented and committed individuals whose energy, creativity and determination are contagious. Whether they are lawyers, scientists, campaigners, journalists, academics or local communities, they continually renew my motivation and remind me that I am not alone and why this work matters.
The hardest part is that meaningful change is rarely easy. Environmental work can sometimes feel daunting, especially when the problems are urgent, the stakes are high, and the obstacles seem endless. There are days when it feels like you spend your time knocking down walls only to discover another one behind them. Progress can be slow, resistance can be strong, and setbacks are inevitable. The work can be demanding, both intellectually and emotionally, and there are certainly grey days when everything appears to be moving in the wrong direction. In those moments, the challenge is to keep going, to find the energy to stay constructive, and to remember that lasting change is often the result of persistence rather than quick victories. Fortunately, the people around me, and the belief that the work is worthwhile, are often what provide that extra energy when it is needed most.
Another challenging aspect of my work is turning a broad systemic problem into a legal issue that can actually be brought before a court. Environmental problems are often complex, interconnected and rooted in decades of political, economic and social decisions. Identifying what is going wrong is only the starting point. The real challenge is to isolate a specific legal failure, gather robust and credible evidence, and build a case that is firmly grounded in facts, science and the law. This requires working closely with scientists, experts, affected communities and other partners to ensure that our arguments are not only legally sound but also supported by reliable and verifiable evidence.
What makes this particularly difficult is that concepts such as justice and injustice are rarely perceived in the same way by everyone. Different groups may have legitimate interests, concerns and perspectives that do not always align. As a lawyer, my role is therefore not to rely on emotion or personal conviction alone, however strong they may be. It is to remain as objective as possible, carefully assess the available evidence, understand competing interests, and build arguments that are rigorous, fair and capable of being understood and accepted beyond those who already agree with the cause. In many ways, the challenge is to transform a problem that feels morally obvious into a case that is legally demonstrable, scientifically credible and persuasive to decision-makers who may start from a very different perspective.
Your route into this work
How did you get into this work, and were there any key opportunities, decisions, or turning points along the way?
I have dreamed of working in environmental protection for as long as I can remember. As a child, I even wrote a little booklet about dolphins. Being passionate about the ocean from a very young age, I quickly came to understand that marine ecosystems were both extraordinary and fragile. When you spend time in nature, you notice when something changes, when something feels out of balance. I think there is a natural instinct to protect the things that inspire us and make us dream.
At the same time, I have always been deeply interested in people. That human dimension remains at the heart of both my convictions and my work today. For me, people and the environment are not opposing forces. They are part of the same whole, and one of the great challenges of our time is learning how to reconcile them.
That is probably why, during my studies, I actively sought opportunities to understand the human, economic and social realities behind environmental issues. I worked on fishing vessels, in a fish auction market in Normandy, and completed an internship with the French maritime administration. I was even a lighthouse keeper for a period, which absolutely deserves a mention because I found the experience fascinating. I wanted to understand the people whose lives were connected to the sea, not just the policies that governed it. I never wanted to become the kind of “technocrat” who speaks about environmental issues without understanding the realities on the ground. I've always felt it was important to understand problems in their full complexity.
As I pursued my ambition to contribute to environmental protection, I quickly realised that many of the key decisions affecting our oceans were made at the European level. That led me to study European law and gradually specialise in environmental law and the Common Fisheries Policy.
At the end of my law studies, I completed a “Blue Book” internship at the European Commission. When it ended, I was offered a professional position, which I gladly accepted. I found myself immersed, at a relatively young age, in the fascinating and sometimes intimidating world of European affairs. I worked alongside some incredibly talented and knowledgeable people. I learned an enormous amount, sometimes the hard way. The system and people around me were demanding, but I think they always recognised a young professional driven by passion and energy.
To be honest, there were many moments when I felt very small, somewhat out of place, and not entirely legitimate. I often drew my confidence from my passion rather than my credentials. I had arrived from provincial France. I grew up in Bordeaux, spoke imperfect English and came from what I would describe as an intellectual but modest family. This new life in Brussels was a huge challenge for me. What I did have was a huge amount of motivation, passion and hope. I wanted to be part of something bigger than myself. I wanted to contribute. I have always been guided, at least I hope so, by a strong sense of humanism.
Over the years, I discovered the law of the sea, and fisheries policies: a world of extraordinary complexity. As a child, sitting in my bedroom dreaming about whales, I sometimes felt like I was the only person worried about marine issues. Then I discovered an entire ecosystem of people who cared deeply. Through my work, I learned how European institutions function, how power operates, and how decisions are made. I met small-scale fishers, coastal communities, industrial fishing operators, environmental organisations, scientists and government representatives. I travelled across Europe and to Africa. And perhaps most importantly, I realised how much I didn't know. The world is constantly evolving, and I suspect I will never fully understand all of its complexities. But hopefully I understand enough to help make a small contribution.
After eight years at the European Commission, in the Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, I eventually realised it was time to engage more directly in environmental advocacy and litigation. I wanted to put everything I had learned within that large institution to work for causes that aligned more closely with my personal convictions. Environmental organisations I had collaborated with in the past reached out quite quickly. Thanks to the technical expertise I had developed at the Commission, particularly on fisheries regulations, I was able to use my knowledge, experience and professional network to support causes that matched both my values and my energy.
In the end, I think a large part of what has sustained my motivation over the years is the trust that others placed in me. But their confidence never made me feel entitled; quite the opposite. It made me want to work harder, learn more and prove that their trust was well placed. Whenever my confidence wavered, their belief in me often provided the extra push I needed to keep moving forward. In many respects, my motivation has been powered as much by the trust of others as by my own convictions.
Looking back, my greatest opportunity was probably that I never listened too closely to those who thought it wasn't possible. I chose to trust my own potential, and then worked relentlessly and rigorously to live up to it.
What education, training, or experience helped you get into this role?
After studying European law in France (two Master’s degrees), I came to Brussels in 2007 for a ‘Blue Book’ internship at the Directorate General of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of the European Commission.
I worked for 8 years alternately in the legal service and the fisheries control team of DG MARE, where I developed a solid expertise on fisheries management and in particular on compliance aspects. I participated in the process of revising the current EU fisheries control regulation (evaluation, public consultation and drafting) and audited the control system of several Member States and third countries.
Since then, I have been putting my expertise at the service of environmental NGOs such as WWF EPO and The Pew Charitable Trust.
Influencing political decisions is not enough. We need to push EU institutions and Member States to effectively implement and enforce these legislations. ClientEarth has made compliance with environmental law its identity. That is why I decided to join this NGO in 2019 as a legal expert.
Reflections and advice
What advice would you give someone interested in this kind of work, and where should they look for their first step?
To young professionals who aspire to follow a similar path, my advice is simple: believe in yourself. If someone else has achieved it, there is no reason you cannot achieve it too.
Work hard, always stay kind, be curious, cultivate a strategic mindset and develop a distinctive expertise while never losing sight of the bigger picture. Excellence comes from mastering a craft, but leadership comes from understanding how your contribution fits into a broader mission. Focus on what matters most and where you can have the greatest systemic impact.
Most importantly, join the community of people who are striving to make the world a better place. We have never needed your talent, energy, and commitment more than we do today. There will always be challenges ahead, but there will also always be a place for those who are willing to contribute.
My final advice: Always keep the conviction that we are only a small piece of a vast puzzle, but that without this small piece, the puzzle will never be complete. Your contribution matters more than you may realize.
What is one mistake, challenge, or lesson from early in your career that taught you something useful?
I made so many mistakes... 😊 Our life is made of mistakes more than victories. But as a judoka, I learned from a young age that you do not always progress through victories. Sometimes the biggest lessons come from hitting the mat. I've tried to carry that mindset into my professional life: failures and setbacks are rarely pleasant, but they are often where the most growth happens. Over the years, I've learned to turn them into fuel for the next challenge. I would probably not be where I am without all the mistakes I have done…
If you could go back in time, would you do anything differently? If so, what would that be?
Learn to say “no”, listen to your limits, and make sure they are respected in all circumstances.
And most importantly, never skip your English classes at university. 😊 For many years, my limited command of English was a real handicap (yet it never stopped me from pursuing my ambitions and striving for the goals I had set for myself).