The First Amendment - Trends And Challenges In The Age Of The Roberts Court
The First Amendment includes some of our most cherished freedoms: speech, press and religious exercise. For much of our history, the First Amendment was also viewed as erecting a wall of separation between religion and government. We will explore the evolution of First Amendment law. We will then review significant First Amendment cases decided by the Roberts Court in an attempt to answer the following questions: Do these decisions represent the natural next evolutionary step in First Amendment law? If not, where is the Court taking us? Does the wall between religion and government still stand? What can we expect in the future? The session promises to be informative and stimulating.
Jon Pushinsky is an adjunct professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, where he teaches courses on Constitutional and First Amendment law. He maintains a private practice where he concentrates in the areas of civil rights/civil liberties and appellate litigation. Mr. Pushinsky was nominated for an appointment to the Pennsylvania Superior Court by the Acting Governor in 1993. He was recently appointed to the Pennsylvania Interbranch Commission For Gender, Racial & Ethnic Fairness. Mr. Pushinsky was awarded the 1991 Annual Civil Liberties Award of the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania and was the recipient of the United Jewish Federation’s 1997 Sonia and Aaron Levinson Community Relations Award. He is a member of the Allegheny County Academy of Trial Lawyers and is a frequent lecturer on civil rights and civil liberties topics.