Law and Policy | Planetizen Courses

Understanding laws and regulations is key to implementing effective planning policies and ensuring compliance with federal, state, and local statutes. Planetizen Courses offers classes on a wide range of regulations and legal issues that planners routinely come up against. Learn about code drafting, ethics, land use regulation, and how to navigate legal processes.

Law and Policy Courses

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aerial view of cars at large intersection

Transportation Planning: Travel Behavior Principles and Modelling Approaches

Richard Willson

55 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

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tall trees and mountains with a night sky of stars

Lighting Regulations and Dark Sky Places

66 Mins

CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM

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bright neon signs in las vegas

Defensible Sign Regulations

Eric Damian Kelly

63 Mins

AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

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stores and buildings on main street

Introduction to Planning

46 Mins

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Image of International Symbol of Access next to weighing scales

US Disability Access Laws for Planners

Jonathan Katz-Ouziel, Thomas Hamed

109 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM

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colorful townhomes

Missing Middle Housing: Meeting the Growing Demand for Walkable Urbanism

72 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A

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Panel of five speakers on webcams

Housing and Racial Justice: Current Events Urban Resilience

59 Mins

CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM
SACPLAN CPD

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wood carved letters spelling out ethics

Ethics: Balancing a Business Friendly Planning Environment

Carol D. Barrett

59 Mins

AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

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aerial view of cars on highway

Transportation Planning: Strategies for Working with Roadway Capacity

Richard Willson

63 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

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person standing in front of a colorful mural

Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design

59 Mins

CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM

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skyline of LInkcoln Park Chicago

Economic Thinking for Planners: Cities, Externalities, and Governance

56 Mins

AICP CM
SACPLAN CPD

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handshake

Planning Official Ethics 101

62 Mins

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american flag with government building in background for urban planning course

Leadership in Planning: Strategic Decision-Making in the Public Interest

60 Mins

AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

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wildfire on a hill behind a row of suburban homes

Resilience Planning for Wildfires

58 Mins

CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM

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zoning law books

Code Drafting and the Law

66 Mins

AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

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collage of images with families, a crowded sidewalk, and a farmer's market

Defining Neighborhoods

54 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

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A crumbling residential building with collapsed floors

Building Bad, Part 1: How Architectural Utility is Constrained by Politics

Jonathan Ochshorn

57 Mins

CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM

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government building

Economic Thinking for Planners: Local Government and Governance

53 Mins

AICP CM
SACPLAN CPD

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Austin comprehensive plan graphic

What is a Comprehensive Plan?

60 Mins

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exterior photo of home for urban planning course

Exploring the Regulation of Short-Term Rentals

67 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A

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examples of universal design which include bus stop sign with large letters, public transit space for wheelchair bound people

Planning for Universal Design

46 Mins

CIP
AICP CM

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closeup of ethics defintion

Ethics: Balancing a Business Friendly Planning Environment, Part 2

Carol D. Barrett

56 Mins

AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

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interior of marijuana dispensary

Local Regulation of Marijuana Businesses

56 Mins

AICP CM

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Sprawling residential neighborhoods with many single family houses.

Arbitrary Lines: How Zoning Broke the American City and How to Fix it

67 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM

Top Law and Policy Instructors

Richard Willson

Richard Willson is a professor in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at California State...

Daniel Parolek

Daniel Parolek is a nationally recognized thought leader in architecture, design, and urban planning, specifically in...

Eric Damian Kelly

Eric Damian Kelly is a lawyer and planner with more than 35 years of experience working...

Peter Gordon

Peter Gordon is Professor Emeritus at the University of Southern California Price School of Public Policy...

Peter Henn

PETER J. HENN, Esq., AICP, is a land use attorney at Jones Foster in West Palm...

Mary Reilly

Mary Reilly is a land use educator with Michigan State University Extension.

Alan Weinstein

Alan Weinstein holds a joint faculty appointment at Cleveland State University’s Cleveland-Marshall College of Law and...

Jennifer Raitt

Jennifer Raitt is the Executive Director of the Northern Middlesex Council of Governments. She has nearly...

Nolan Gray

M. Nolan Fray is the Research Director for California YIMBY, an expert in urban land-use regulation...

Álvaro Huerta

Dr. Álvaro Huerta is a Religion and Public Life Organizing Fellow at Harvard Divinity School and...

Lance Freeman

Lance Freeman is a Professor in the Urban Planning Program at Columbia University in New York...

Brad Neumann

Brad Neumann is a MSU Senior Extension Educator who serves as an educational resource for local...

Wayne Beyea

Wayne Beyea is a faculty member and senior specialist - outreach within the MSU School of...

Malak Hakim

Malak Hakim is a nationally accredited urban planner.

James Carpentier

James Carpentier is State and Local Government Affairs Manager with the International Sign Association (ISA).

Lisa Wise

As a planner and Certified Public Accountant, Ms. Wise has 20 years of professional experience in...

Thomas Hawkins

Thomas Hawkins, a Florida licensed attorney, has represented parties on all sides of the planning and...

Mark White

S. Mark White is recognized as an expert in zoning and planning/land use law.

Carol D. Barrett

Ms. Barrett is a highly acclaimed expert in planning ethics.

Thomas Hamed

Thomas Hamed, AICP is a transportation planner who specializes in commuter transportation and mobility for all...

Jonathan Katz-Ouziel

Jonathan Katz-Ouziel is an autistic planner, an independent accessibility consultant, and the founder of Opossum House...

Elizabeth Doerr

Elizabeth Doerr is a writer with expertise and awareness around social and racial justice issues and...

Lynn Peterson

Lynn Peterson is a nationally recognized transportation and land use integration expert.

Jonathan Ochshorn

Jonathan is a registered architect with an academic background in structural engineering and urban design as...

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All Law and Policy Courses

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The American City, Part 2: The Invention of a New Scale

Instructor: Mark David Major

Understand how the physical characteristics of block size and street length distinguish American cities from earlier models of urbanism, and the implications of these physical characteristics for sustainability in the 21st century.

4.30

50 Mins

AIA CES

AICP CM

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The American City, Part 1: A Brief History of the Regular Grid

Instructor: Mark David Major

Learn why the regular grid has been a standard part of the town planning vocabulary around the world for nearly five millennia.

4.13

47 Mins

AIA CES

AICP CM

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Economic Thinking for Planners: Cities, Externalities, and Governance

Instructor: Peter Gordon

Through history, people have become better off as they urbanized. This course investigates how and why the quality of life has improved in cities.

4.17

56 Mins

AICP CM

SACPLAN CPD