David A. Logan , professor of law and former dean of RWU Law, who has studied and written extensively about First Amendment issues, contributed this piece to RWU's First Amendment Blog :, Among President-elect Donald Trump's many ill-informed campaign statements was that he was "going to open up libel laws." Where to begin? First, libel law was, and remains, state law. Second, while federal legislation does impact pockets of libel law (most notably, the Communications Decency Act protects websites from liability for merely hosting defamatory statements posted by third parties…, New York Times v. Sullivan (1964), , the U.S. Supreme Court has recognized that such civil litigation represented a serious threat to robust reporting on important public matters. To limit the "chilling effect" of such lawsuits, the court interposed an array of doctrines that made it very difficult for public officials and other powerful "public figures" to win damages for libel, even if a published statement was false and…, New York Times v. Sullivan, and its progeny. But it turns out that these First Amendment barriers to vexatious lawsuits against the media might be porous. Consider the lawsuit brought by pro wrestler Hulk Hogan against the salacious website Gawker for publishing videotapes of Hogan having sex with a friend's wife. Even though the tapes were embarrassing and unflattering to Hogan's public image, they were not false, so a…
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Public Interest Community, The Feinstein Center for Pro Bono & Experiential Education is the hub of public interest law at RWU Law and we work to foster a pro bono culture within the law school and cultivate graduates who will give back and help those in need, whether through public interest careers or pro bono legal service in their private practice. We work closely with RWU Law’s Association for Public Interest Law…
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RWU Law understands the financial challenges of pursuing a public interest career. We are here to help you whether you want to be a full-time public interest lawyer or a private sector attorney doing pro bono work. We have financial programs designed to help you come to RWU School of Law (Public Interest Scholarships), to help you gain public interest experience through unpaid summer…, Scholarships, Public Interest Scholarships are awarded to students who have shown a strong commitment to public interest law and a willingness to enter into public interest law after graduation. These scholarships are awarded at the time of admission., Summer Stipend Program, Public interest summer internships are invaluable opportunities to gain experience, make contacts, and build upon your commitment to public interest. Because many public interest opportunities are unpaid, students can apply for a summer stipend through the Office of Career Development's competitive Public Interest Stipend Program . , PILRAP, RWU Law's Public Interest Loan Repayment Assistance Program (PILRAP) was created in 2008 and is designed to provide support in the form of forgivable loans to our graduates pursuing careers representing low-income clients in non-profit offices. , , Graduates may apply in the spring after they graduate. More Information about PILRAP, Postgraduate Fellowships, The RWU Law Center for Justice Fellowship is open to only RWU Law graduates and employs recent graduates of Roger Williams University School of Law as staff attorneys for a two-year fellowship period. Students may also apply for highly competitive post-graduate public interest fellowships sponsored by many different organizations. The most well-known programs are the Equal Justice Works…
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At the Bronx Defenders, I have gained practical courtroom experience as well as learned what it really means to provide holistic defense. The lawyers at the Bronx Defenders care about the whole client, not just the legal case, and I’ve been able to learn from some of the most talented public defenders anywhere. After spending my “Alternative Spring Break” here during my first year of law school,…
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Application Information, Applications: 919 Accepted: 627 Enrolled: 170, LSAT & GPA - Overall*, Percentile, LSAT, GPA, 75th Percentile 151 3.5 Median 148 3.3 25th Percentile 145 3.0 * Data is certified by the Law School Admissions Council. , LSAT & GPA – Honors Program, Percentile, LSAT, GPA, 75th Percentile 159 3.7 Median 155 3.6 25th Percentile 154 3.3, Age Distribution, Ages: 20 - 50 Average Age: 25, Gender, Women 56% Men 44%, Diversity, Entering Class: 32% Asian/Pacific Islander 7 American Indian/American Native 0 Black/African American 13 Hispanic/Latino 24 Multi-Racial 6 LGBTQ: 10%, * This data is as of 8/15/2017.
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All forms listed below are accessible to current students through the RWU Law Bridges page .
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The Marine Affairs Institute prepares students to become professionals in the field of ocean and coastal law. Alumni of the Marine Affairs Institute are working for the federal government, state government, private law firms, non-government agencies, academia, and have received prestigious post-graduate fellowships. , John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship Program, Established in 1979, this fellowship program matches highly qualified graduate students interested in ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes resources with hosts in the federal legislative or executive branches of government in Washington, DC.
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The Knauss Fellowship, established in 1979, matches highly qualified graduate students interested in ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes resources and in the national policy decisions affecting those resources with hosts in the federal legislative or executive branches of government in Washington, DC. The Fellows are sponsored by Rhode Island Sea Grant, located at the University of Rhode Island, and…, John Ryan-Henry, ’16, is working as a 2017 Executive Fellow with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Institute for Water Resources/Coastal States Organization. , Nicholas Obolensky, '12, a 2013 Fellow, worked with the Office of the Assistant Administration, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, National Oceanic and Atomospheric Administration., Sarah Parker, , Lim, '12, interned as a 2013 Fellow with the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources., Kathleen Haber Lambert, '10, a 2011 Fellow, worked with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning Program., Christina Hoefsmit, '10, interned as a 2011 Fellow in the Coast Guard's Marine Transportation System office., Nicholas Battista, ‘08 was a 2009 Fellow and worked for Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-ME)., Jennifer Mehaffey, ‘07, a 2008 Fellow, worked as a Policy Advisor to the Director of the Committee on Marine Transportation System, U.S. Department of Transportation., Elizabeth Etrie , ‘06 interned as a 2007 Fellow with the Office of Marine Conservation, Department of State in its Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs. For more information regarding the fellowship, please see the Sea Grant website .
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Can Offshore Wind Development Have a Net Positive Impact on Biodiversity? Regulatory and Scientific Perspectives and Considerations, This symposium explored the concept of NPI in the ocean and near coastal environment, and ask whether and how it should be integrated into offshore wind projects in the United States., Legal Strategies for Climate Adaptation in Coastal New England, This symposium will focus on how state and local governments in coastal New England can overcome legal barriers to climate adaptation., Legal Aspects of Coastal Adaptation & Resilience in RI (Dec 2015), This workshop allowed attendees to better understand the data, tools, and projects underway at the state level, and a change to discuss and exchange ideas related to how the legal community might address these topics as they evolve., 10th Marine Law Symposium (Nov 2016), This Symposium discussed the adequacy of U.S. law and policy to prevent the creation of new marine debris and to remove debris once it is created., 9th Marine Law Symposium (Nov. 2012), This Symposium examined the laws and policies that are implicated as climate change impacts coastal and ocean environments., Event Archives, An archived list of past RWU Law events.
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