Clayton County Grants License to Salon Entrepreneur Who Brought Constitutional Lawsuit

Clayton County, Ga.—Over a year after Khalilah Few brought a lawsuit against Clayton County for unconstitutionally denying her a license to open a hair salon, the county has finally granted her a permit to open. The county had originally denied her permit citing a “saturation” of hair salons in the area. But the county doesn’t want to change the law, which will allow it to keep unjustly denying other people their right to open. That’s why, along with the Institute for Justice (IJ), Khalilah will continue her lawsuit to protect the constitutional right of all Georgians to own and operate a business.  

For years, Clayton County has denied entrepreneur after entrepreneur their right to start lawful businesses. The record in court was so overwhelming that the county decided to “reconsider” her application on its own before having to answer questions under oath at a deposition.  

But for Khalilah the fight’s not over. That’s because this fight has always been about more than just herself.

“No one should have to go through what I’ve been through,” said Khalilah. “It’s nice that the Commissioners gave me the conditional use permit, but they should have done so more than a year ago, and they shouldn’t be able to keep doing the same thing to other people in the community.”

“What Clayton County did, and wants to keep doing, is unconstitutional,” said IJ Senior Attorney Will Aronin. “Until a Court rules in our favor or the Commissioners change the law we will keep this fight alive.”

Founded in 1991, IJ litigates nationwide to defend property rights, economic liberty, educational choice, and free speech. This is not the first time IJ has litigated in Georgia, having previously won a case overturning an egregious licensing law that prohibited qualified workers from working as lactation consultants. This case is part of The Zoning Justice Project, which aims to protect and promote the freedom to use property. IJ has successfully protected against arduous zoning rules and promoted economic liberty in cases such as a North Carolina animal sanctuary’s right to operate in the face of arbitrary county regulations. In Fort Pierce, Florida, IJ helped defeat a zoning law that banned food trucks within 500 feet of an established restaurant.

Khalilah is also represented by Andrea Pearson from the Bloom Parham law firm as local counsel.