Franciska Coleman

Associate Professor of Law; Associate Director, East Asian Legal Studies Center

Contact

facoleman@wisc.edu
+16082656266
Room 6101, Law School

Curriculum Vitae

Websites:
Educated Citizenry

@EducatedCitizn

Education

Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania (2011)
J.D., Harvard Law School (2008)

Biography

Franciska Coleman is an Associate Professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Wisconsin Law School, the Associate Director of the East Asian Legal Studies Center, Chair of the AALS Section on Election Law, and the Immediate Past Chair of the AALS Section on Constitutional Law. She is an interdisciplinary scholar, whose work draws upon political theory, critical discourse analysis, and First Amendment Law. Professor Coleman is deeply interested in exploring the changes to our constitutional framework that would be needed to facilitate the U.S.’s transition from a somewhat dysfunctional liberal democracy into a well-functioning multiracial, interclass democracy. Her current research project focuses on defining multiracial, interclass democracy and its prerequisties. She is also expanding her work on the social regulation of speech to explore socio-legal challenges to the process of public opinion and will-formation in modern democracies, with particular attention to academic freedom and the distortions flowing from affective polarization.

Professor Coleman’s scholarship has appeared in the Journal of Free Speech Law, the First Amendment Law Review, the Boston University Law Review, and the American University Law Review Forum among others. In addition, Professor Coleman regularly presents her work on social speech regulation (aka “cancel culture”) to state bar associations, high school students, and community groups. She is also a frequent commentator on these issues for public news and radio stations, such as WPR and PBS.

Professor Coleman previously taught American Constitutional Law I and II at Yonsei Law School in Seoul, South Korea. During that time, she worked closely with the Korean government on several initiatives, such as international roundtables on offensive speech held by the Korean Communication Standards Commission and efforts by the Korean Legislation Research Institute to make Korean statutes more accessible to foreign communities.

Prior to her time in Korea, Professor Coleman worked as an associate in the litigation and appellate practice groups at Covington & Burling in Washington, DC. She received her JD from Harvard Law School and her PhD in Literacy, Culture and International Education from the University of Pennsylvania. While studying at these institutions, she was awarded the AAUW Selected Professions Fellowship and the Fontaine Fellowship.

Scholarship & Publications

SSRN

Law Repository

Activities

Franciska Coleman published "Why Aren't Scholars Braver?" to SSRN on June 3, 2026.
Franciska Coleman received an Exceptional Service Support Award in connection with her excellent work not only on campus and in her public engagement, but also through her national leadership as founding chair of the New Lutie Committee, a national initiative focused on mentoring Black women entering academia, and as Chair and Chair-Elect, respectively, of the AALS Constitutional Law and Election Law sections.
Franciska Coleman wrote "Can An Employee Be Fired for Free Speech? A Legal Analysis of Employment Law and Political Expression" for BSAB Law on Sept. 20, 2025.
Franciska Coleman was an invited presenter of a new paper, “Are the Adjuncts Alright,” during the Freedom of Expression Scholars Conference April 25-26, 2025, at Yale Law School.
Franciska Coleman was an invited panelist on the Power of Our Neighbors Constitutional Democracy and Civic Education panel during the University of Missouri Law Review Symposium March 13-14, 2025.
Franciska Coleman was named chair-elect of The Association of American Law School’s Section on Election Law in January 2025.
Franciska Coleman was elected chair of The Association of American Law School’s Section on Constitutional Law in January 2025.
Franciska Coleman’s paper, “Multiracial, Interclass Democracy,” was published in the Seton Hall Law Review, Vol. 55, Issue 4 (2025).
Franciska Coleman was elected chair elect of the Association of American Law Schools section on Constitutional Law.
Franciska Coleman published "The Anatomy of Cancel Culture" on SSRN March 3, 2023. Read the paper.
Franciska Coleman was a panelist discussing "Private Employer Sanctions on Free Speech" during a Non-governmental Restrictions on Free Speech symposium hosted by Arizona State University on March 19, 2022.
Franciska Coleman posted a chapter on the U.S. Constitution in a book entitled "The 2020 International Review of Constitutional Reform" to SSRN. Read the abstract and download the paper.
Franciska Coleman posted "America’s Constitutional Contradictions" to SSRN. Read the abstract and download the paper.
Franciska Coleman posted a new essay to SSRN, "From Protection to Empowerment." Read the abstract and download the article.
Franciska Coleman presented “Federalism in the Time of COVID” for the State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program entitled A Global Moment in Time: Photojournalists Document Challenges and Opportunities in the COVID era, on Oct. 5, 2021.