Wanted:
Media Law Attorneys

The Student Press Law Center outside Washington, D.C., continues to update and expand its nationwide pro bono Attorney Referral Network. The SPLC -- the only legal assistance agency in the country devoted exclusively to protecting the First Amendment and freedom of information rights of the student media -- encourages all lawyers with either experience or a strong interest in handling media law issues to send a resume and/or letter of interest to the Center to be considered for pro bono referrals.

For nearly thirty years, the Student Press Law Center has been devoted to combatting suppression of student expression and providing effective legal assistance for student journalists and their advisers. Much of the Center' s work is also aimed at educating and informing student journalists and the public about the rights and responsibilties embodied in the First Amendment. The SPLC is a non-profit, charitable 501(c)(3) corporation. All legal services are provided cost-free to student journalists, faculty advisers and those working with the student press.

While most of the over 2,000 requests for legal assistance received by the SPLC each year are handled by the SPLC staff, it is occasionally necessary for the Center to assist student journalists in finding local attorneys that have expressed a willingness to handle legal matters on a pro bono basis. Calls to the Student Press Law Center come from all fifty states and the District of Columbia.

Legal assistance ranges from making a phone call on a student's behalf to acting as a media spokesperson to drafting an opinion letter to actual litigation. Cases involve work in areas such as censorship, defamation/invasion of privacy, copyright and freedom of information law. In addition, a number of Student Press Law Center volunteers have conducted group workshops or seminars for student journalists on various media law topics. Attorneys have generally found the work exciting and rewarding. In addition to providing valuable experience in media law, the cases often involve a great deal of community -- and, at times, national -- exposure.

The amount of time given to Student Press Law Center referrals is up to you as all work is done on a pro bono, volunteer basis. Those lawyers accepting a referral can count on the full support of the SPLC's Washington, D.C.-area staff and office resources.

If you have a strong commitment to the principles embodied in the First Amendment and want to utilize your legal skills in the battle for a free, uninhibited and robust student press, the Student Press Law Center would like to hear from you.

For more information or to submit a resume or letter of interest, please contact:

Mike Hiestand, Esq.
SPLC Legal Consultant
Student Press Law Center
1101 Wilson Blvd.
Suite 1100
Arlington, VA 22209-2275