First Amendment Clinic
Students in the First Amendment Clinic represent clients seeking to vindicate their First Amendment rights.
The First Amendment Clinic at Duke Law protects and advances the freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and petition through direct representation of clients and policy advocacy. Our clients include journalists, individuals, and organizations, of diverse points of view, whose free speech rights have been infringed. Representative matters include:
- Defamation defense
- Prepublication review of news articles, podcasts, and blogs;
- Social media blocking;
- Access to courts, public records, and public meetings;
- Specialized appellate representation and amicus support;
- Policy advocacy for Anti-SLAPP legislation and reform of municipal protest and public meeting ordinances
Funding for the First Amendment Clinic is provided by the Stanton Foundation, which serves to complete the philanthropic agenda of Frank Stanton in supporting the First Amendment and creating a more informed citizenry.
The First Amendment Clinic has filed an amicus brief supporting the petition for certiorari in State of Idaho v. Wilson, No. 24-853 (U.S., Feb 11, 2025). The research on laws similar to the Moscow City Ordinance at issue in the case can be found here.
Campus Speech Database
In 2019, the First Amendment Clinic launched a publicly accessible database relating to free speech disputes on U.S. college campuses. The clinic’s Campus Speech Database documents free speech occurrences on college campuses nationally and how any resulting litigation was resolved. It includes events that raised potential First Amendment concerns and were settled out of court, as well as events that received public backlash but no further activity. The repository serves as a resource for university administrators on handling campus speech issues and also provides guidance for practitioners litigating campus speech claims. The clinic received a grant from the Stanton Foundation to create the database.
Law in Action: The Clinic Experience
Clinical Professor Sarah Ludington, director of the First Amendment Clinic, and Clinical Professor Amanda Martin, supervising attorney for the clinic, talk about the clinic's work, how students get involved, the skills that students learn, and their favorite part about leading the clinic.
The clinic provides students the opportunity to work directly with clients facing free expression concerns, including defamation, content-discrimination, and reporter’s privilege.
