News & Media

In Spring 2024, Clinic students and fellows published op-eds in support of
First Amendment freedoms and government accountability.

Members of UGA Law School’s First Amendment Clinic moderated and presented during the 33rd annual Georgia Bar, Media & Judiciary Conference.

Speaking to audiences on both coasts, Clinic director Clare R. Norins and Clinic attorney Samantha Hamilton respectively unpacked some of the digital free speech issues to be decided during the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023-2024 term.

“Algorithms, AI, & First Amendment Rights”

Clinic director Clare Norins (third from right) and Clinic student Ren Schmitt (first from right) participated in two panel events as part of Yale Law School’s October 2023 Access & Accountability Conference.

Clare Norins, director of the University of Georgia’s First Amendment Clinic, spoke with Georgia Public Broadcasting’s Orlando Montoya about recent petition-and-referendum initiatives in Georgia, including voters’ rejection of the Camden County spaceport project, which outcome was upheld by the Georgia Supreme Court, and the petition effort to stop the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center (APSTC), which has been the subject of federal litigation.

Georgia Journalism and Access Project Attorney Samantha C. Hamilton was interviewed  by The Augusta Chronicle about Columbia County, Georgia’s unconstitutional “panhandling” ordinance. The article titled “When can local governments restrict asking for money in public? Rarely, says lawyer” was written by Abraham Kenmore and published 9/28/23.

First Amendment Clinic Legal Fellow Allyson Veile spoke to the Georgia Recorder about the Georgia Attorney General’s open government mediation program which handles complaints of non-compliance with Georgia’s Open Records Act and Open Meetings Act. The article titled “Georgia AG shrugs off open records violations but demands local DAs enforce all laws equally” was written by Chaya Tong and published 9/22/23.

The article posits that ambiguities in how government officials use their private campaign social media accounts after winning election should be resolved in favor of finding the First Amendment applies.

The 2023 legislative session was a busy time for the Georgia General Assembly, with many bills introduced — a good number of which passed — impacting free expression and open government interests.

University of Georgia School of Law’s First Amendment Clinic director Clare Norins was featured on Georgia Public Broadcasting’s “Political Rewind,” which aired March 2, 2023.

The following guest column by Clinic director Clare R. Norins was published by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on October 4, 2022: