October 18, 2012
Andrew R. Hamilton '13 recently placed third in the nationwide
Religious Freedom Student Writing Competition, sponsored annually
by the J. Reuben Clark Law Society and the International Center for
Law and Religion Studies at Brigham Young Uni
versity. His paper, "The New York Marriage Equality Act
and the Strength of Its Religious Exceptions," explores whether the
religious exceptions in New York’s recent same-sex marriage law
would allow a religious organization to refuse to place foster
children with same-sex couples, in accordance with the
organization’s religious beliefs.
Andrew recently received his $500 prize at the annual
International Religious Liberty Award Dinner in Washington D.C. The
program included speeches by leaders in the field of law and
religion, including keynote speaker Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett, Chair
of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom and
President of the Lantos Foundation. The evening concluded with the
presentation of the 2012 International Religious Liberty Award to
Professor Douglas Laycock of the University of Virginia." Receiving
the award and attending the dinner was a great experience,” Andrew
said. “While at the dinner, I met faculty and students who are
doing great things in this field. I even met two professors who
were instrumental in drafting religious exceptions I discussed in
my paper. They appreciated my analysis."
Law and religion is one of Andrew’s main academic interests. He
is currently in his second year as a Student Fellow at the Law
School's
Center for Law and Religion (CLR) and participated in last
spring's
Colloquium in Law and Religion. This semester, he is taking the
seminar, Catholic Social Thought and the Law, taught by CLR
Associate Director
Marc O. DeGirolami. His paper, which will be published as a
Note in a forthcoming edition of the Journal of Catholic Legal
Studies, was the result of a directed research project under the
supervision of CLR Director
Mark L. Movsesian.
Students and others interested in learning more about the Center
for Law and Religion should visit
stjohns.edu/clr or clrforum.org.