Jennifer Safstrom has been named the full-time Director of the Stanton Foundation First Amendment Clinic. Safstrom previously taught the clinic as a Visiting Assistant Clinical Professor of Law.
“We are thrilled for Professor Safstrom to continue her work with the clinic in this new capacity,” said Dean Chris Guthrie. “Her appointment is a testament to the passion and expertise she brings to her teaching, as well as the effectiveness of her students’ legal advocacy.”
Before joining Vanderbilt’s law faculty, Professor Safstrom was the Dunn Legal Fellow at the ACLU of Virginia, where she litigated in federal and state court. Following her fellowship, she served as counsel to the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection at Georgetown Law Center and as supervising attorney and clinical teaching fellow in the Civil Rights Clinic, where she litigated cases and co-taught skills classes. She has published and presented on a range of civil rights topics, including First Amendment issues.
“I am delighted for the opportunity to continue advancing speech, press, and assembly protections through the Clinic’s work,” Professor Safstrom shared. “In my role, it is a privilege to empower Vanderbilt’s student attorneys as they engage in advocacy on novel legal issues in federal and state courts.”
Students in the Stanton Foundation First Amendment Clinic are responsible for representing clients in civil litigation cases implicating First Amendment rights of persons and organizations otherwise unable to afford counsel for those matters. Casework focuses on free speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of assembly.
“Professor Safstrom revitalized my passion for the law at a critical juncture in my legal education,” said Samantha Hunt ‘23. “Her client-focused approach to running the First Amendment Clinic taught me invaluable practical skills, and her students-first approach to teaching helped me both identify and hone my voice and style as a legal advocate. I will be a better lawyer to my clients because of her, and I think Vanderbilt is very lucky to have her.”