When Edward Martin Jr., the interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, chose to publish a letter criticizing the medical journal CHEST it raised a number of concerns. For free speech advocates, the most pressing concern was why a federal prosecutor would target the protected speech of an independent entity. Speaking to Law360, Professor Lena Shapiro, director of the First Amendment Clinic, said, “letter reads squarely as an attempt to engage in viewpoint discrimination against the journal, which is presumptively unconstitutional.”

The Supreme Court unanimously agreed the law banning TikTok from the United States was constitutional and should go into effect as written; however, on January 20th, President Donald Trump instructed the Attorney General not to enforce the law for 75 days. So, what is going on and what is the legal basis for any of it? Professor Lena Shapiro, who also leads our First Amendment Clinic Director, joined us for a bonus episode of the podcast to examine the details behind this case.

Tuesday, June 11, was about as perfect a day as you could ask for in Cincinnati, Ohio. There was barely a cloud in the sky and the mercury never surpassed 77 degrees. As First Amendment Clinic Director Lena Shapiro and clinicians Lilian Alexandrova ‘24 and Jonathan Resnick ‘24 approached the steps of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, however, Resnick’s brow might have been a bit dewy.

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Speaking to CNN after pro-Palestinian demonstrators were removed from the campuses of Columbia and Brown, Lena Shapiro, director of the First Amendment Clinic, emphasized the importance of safety during campus demonstrations. She explained colleges should ensure all students have a space to protest while imposing reasonable restrictions on the time, place, and manner of protests to maintain order. Additionally, Shapiro highlighted the need for open communication between schools and protesters to find common ground and avoid conflicts.

The First Amendment Clinic is hiring a Fellow for the 2024-2025 academic year. This is a one-year position, with an anticipated start date between June 15, 2024, and August 19, 2024, with the possibility of renewal for a second year depending on performance and funding.

In early 2024, a federal district court judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Disney Corporation against Florida officials for alleged retaliation against Disney’s opposition to certain Florida laws and policies by altering the board that regulates the land where Disney World is located. Professors Vikram Amar, Jason Mazzone, and Lena Shapiro collaborated in an article for Justia Verdict examining the complex constitutional issues raised by this decision. “If government is trying to retaliate against you because of your past speech, doesn’t that violate your First Amendment rights regardless of whether the retaliation takes the form of speech regulation itself?” the professors wrote.

When it comes to speech, “There is legal freedom and there is practical freedom,” Professor Lena Shapiro explained. The director of the First Amendment Clinic explained how the freedoms related to speech in the United States are applied on college campuses, especially in the wake of the October 7 attacks in Israel and the ensuing war. “Most expressions commonly identified as “’hate speech’ are protected by the First Amendment and cannot lawfully be censored, punished or unduly burdened by the government – including by public colleges and universities,” she said.

Does the Lanham Act, which provides the national system of trademark registration and protects owners of registered marks against the use of similar marks, allow national political parties to prohibit individuals from using of their name and logo in communications? This is the key question in a case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, in which the Libertarian National Committee is seeking to stop the Libertarian Party of Michigan from using its marks. The Libertarian Party of Michigan claims their use of the mark for political activities falls outside the Lanham Act’s protections designed for unauthorized use of trademarks in commerce. Professor Lena Shapiro, acting as counsel for the Libertarian Party of Michigan, stressed to Law360 the importance of protecting essential political activities and hopes the Sixth Circuit will rule that political activities should be excluded from trademark infringement law.

In a dramatic scene, police in Marion, Kansas, raided the offices of the Marion County Record newspaper in late August, seizing reporters’ cell phones and computers, among other items. The “unheard of” raid immediately raised questions of First Amendment protections afforded to newspapers like the Marion County Record, which is owned by former Illinois journalism professor Eric K. Meyer. To address these questions, the Illinois News Bureau interviewed Professor Lena Shapiro, director of the First Amendment Clinic, who was unequivocal in her assertion that the raid was a violation of the Constitution’s protections. “This raid should never have happened in the first place, and I hope that the embarrassing outcome for Marion County in the government officials’ pursuit of the raid serves as a deterrent to others who want to push aside First Amendment protections to retaliate against journalists,” she said.

Chicago’s “bubble ordinance” is meant to protect patients from harassment or unwanted solicitation any time they are within a 50-foot radius from the entrance of a medical facility. Protesters’ escalating behavior, particularly in front of facilities that provide abortion services, has led Ald. Bill Conway (34th) to propose a quiet zone in these areas. Professor Lena Shapiro, director of the First Amendment Clinic, spoke to Block Club about this issue and the balance necessary to maintain the right to protest with protections for patients.