The Samuelson Law, Technology & Public Policy Clinic is the leading clinical program in technology law and the public interest. Through hands-on, real-world work, the Clinic trains law and graduate students in public interest work on emerging technologies, privacy, intellectual property, free speech, consumer and citizen interests in technology deployment and design, creativity, innovation, and other information policy issues.
In this work, the Clinic pursues a dual mission: to support the public’s interest in technology law and policy, and to teach law students through real-world work, with live clients, on cutting-edge policy issues.
The Clinic’s affiliated faculty and staff support Clinic students and clients with world-class expertise ranging from patent and copyright law to electronic privacy and online speech.
Read about the Samuelson Clinic’s recent projects, events, and faculty news in our annual newsletter.
Interested students should review our information page and apply here.
Recent Clinic Projects
Preservation of Online Video Games
Samuelson Clinic students and faculty, working on behalf of the Museum of Art & Digital Entertainment, petitioned the U.S. Copyright Office for an exemption to the anti-circumvention rules of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) to aid the preservation of online video games that are no longer supported by their copyright owners. If granted, this exemption will allow libraries, museums, and archives to preserve historically and culturally important video games for future research and study. You can read the petition here.
Fair Use for Nonfiction Authors
Samuelson Clinic students and faculty co-authored a book called Fair Use for Nonfiction Authors with the Authors Alliance. This guide is designed to empower authors to exercise their right to use source materials to further their research and writing goals by helping them make confident fair use decisions. This new guide is the latest in a series of resource books co-written by the Samuelson Clinic, which includes Understanding Rights Reversion and Understanding Open Access. All three books are available for download here.
Electronic Monitoring of Youth in the California Juvenile Justice System
Samuelson Clinic students co-authored a report with the East Bay Community Law Center that evaluates juvenile electronic monitoring programs across California. The report reviews electronic monitoring rules and procedures across the 51 counties in California that use electronic monitoring on youth. It finds that while electronic monitoring is often framed as a less punitive alternative to incarceration, these programs still impose significant burdens on youth and their families. Many programs require families to pay high fees; impose very numerous and complicated rules on youth; and fail to adequately protect youth’s privacy. You can read the report here.