SUMMARY 

SFAI STUDENT FREE SPEECH 

NUTSHELL* 

California has protected the free speech rights 

of students enrolled at private universities.  Cal. 

Educ. Code section 94367.   In enacting the 

Leonard Law, Education Code section 94367, 

the California Legislature intended that “a 

student shall have the same right to exercise his 

or her right to free speech on campus as he or 

she enjoys when off campus.”  Section 4(b) of 

Stats. 1992, c. 1363 (S.B. 1115).  The Leonard 

Law specifically allows a student enrolled at a 

private university to commence a civil action for 

any violations thereof.  Further, the California 

Supreme Court has recognized that free speech 

rights may be enforced against private parties.  

Robins v. Pruneyard Shopping Center 

LAW , 23 Cal. 3d 

899, 910, and n. 5 (1979) (holding that the 

California Constitution protects free speech in a 

private shopping center because the center was 

like a traditional public forum).   

California Constitution, Article I, Section 2(a): 

Every person may freely speak, write and publish his 

or her sentiments on all subjects, being responsible 

for the abuse of this right. A law may not restrain or 

abridge liberty of speech or press. 

California’s Leonard Law, Education Code 

Section 94367 

(a) No private postsecondary educational institution 

shall make or enforce a rule subjecting a student to 

disciplinary sanctions solely on the basis of conduct 

that is speech or other communication that, when 

engaged in outside the campus or facility of a private 

postsecondary institution, is protected from 

governmental restriction by the First Amendment to 

the United States Constitution or Section 2 of Article 

I of the California Constitution. 

(b) A student enrolled in a private postsecondary 

institution at the time that the institution has made 

or enforced any rule in violation of subdivision (a) 

may commence a civil action to obtain appropriate 

injunctive and declaratory relief as determined by 

the court. Upon motion, a court may award 

attorney's fees to a prevailing plaintiff in a civil 

action pursuant to this section. 

(c) This section does not apply to a private 

postsecondary educational institution that is 

controlled by a religious organization, to the extent 

that the application of this section would not be 

consistent with the religious tenets of the 

organization. 

 (d) This section does not authorize the prior 

restraint of student speech. 

 (e) This section does not prohibit the imposition of 

discipline for harassment, threats, or intimidation, 

unless constitutionally protected. 

 (f) This section does not prohibit an institution from 

adopting rules and regulations that are designed to 

prevent hate violence, as defined in subdivision (a) 

of Section 4 of Chapter 1363 of the Statutes of 1992, 

from being directed at students in a manner that 

denies them their full participation in the 

educational process, so long as the rules and 

regulations conform to standards established by the 

First Amendment to the United States Constitution 

and Section 2 of Article I of the California 

Constitution for citizens generally. 

SFAI’S FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION POLICY 

SFAI has a stated policy of “Freedom of Expression,” 

which provides in pertinent part: “SFAI encourages 

the widest variety of personal and artistic 

expressions possible, knowing they may occasionally 

be controversial or offensive.”   

* Distributed by Concerned Students of the San 

Francisco Art Institute 

http://www.sfaistudentaction.pbwiki.com 

<The above information was copied from an original document, drafted for the specific purpose of informing students' as to their rights.  Feel free to contact the administrator of this page with any questions or concerns about the contents of this page.>