Category: 3-LawSometimeCommentary

In the wake of the Supreme Court’s 2013 decision in Shelby County v Holder, many states made changes to their voting laws that may disproportionately harm minorities. This week, lawyers in Ohio filed an emergency motion with the Supreme Court requesting a suspension of voting restrictions in their state. One of those lawyers, Subodh Chandra, joins us to explain why.

We also speak with Wendy Weiser, director of the Democracy Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, about the potential impact of Donald Trump’s recent warnings about vote-rigging. She explains why long-term neglect of our voting infrastructure is a much bigger threat than either vote tampering or self-styled poll watchers.

Transcripts of Amicus are available to Slate Plus members. Consider signing up today! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial here.

Amicus is brought to you by The Great Courses Plus, a video learning service with a large library of lectures all taught by award-winning professors. Get a free month of unlimited access when you sign up at TheGreatCoursesPlus.com/amicus.

And by Blue Apron. For less than $10 per meal, Blue Apron delivers meal kits right to your door to make cooking at home easy. Get your first THREE meals FREE by going to BlueApron.com/amicus.

Please let us know what you think of Amicus. Our email is amicus@slate.com. Follow us on Facebook here. 

Podcast production by Tony Field.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

PLEASE PLEASE fill out a very brief survey for us!!! https://survey.libsyn.com/openargs In this week’s episode, we look at some of the interesting details surrounding the intentional release of classified materials by Edward Snowden.  In particular, we looked at the legacy of Snowden’s leaks,  how they played out in the Second Circuit’s decision in ACLU v. Clapper, 785 F.3d … Continue reading OA19: Should Edward Snowden Be Pardoned? →

The post OA19: Should Edward Snowden Be Pardoned? appeared first on Opening Arguments.

In this week’s super-sized episode, we conclude our three-part role-playing experiment “You Be The Supreme Court,” using an actual case that is currently pending before the Court:  Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Inc. v. Pauley. Last time, we went through the State of Missouri Department of Natural Resources’s response brief.  This week, we look at the … Continue reading OA18: You Be The Supreme Court, Part 3 →

The post OA18: You Be The Supreme Court, Part 3 appeared first on Opening Arguments.

After President Obama nominated Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court in March, there was widespread speculation that opposing his confirmation hearings could have political costs for Republican senators. But seven months later, it’s not clear how much the GOP’s continued obstructionism will matter to voters next month. On this episode, we discuss Obama’s handling of the Supreme Court vacancy with White House Counsel Neil Eggleston and Brian Deese, Senior Adviser to the President.

We also take a closer look at Peña Rodriguez v. Colorado, an important case about jury bias that was argued at the Supreme Court this week. Jeffrey Fisher, who represented the petitioner, joins us to explain why blatantly racist comments uttered by a juror in a criminal trial should invalidate that trial’s verdict. 

Transcripts of Amicus are available to Slate Plus members. Consider signing up today! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial here. 

Amicus is brought to you by The Great Courses Plus, a video learning service with a large library of lectures all taught by award-winning professors. Get a free month of unlimited access when you sign up at TheGreatCoursesPlus.com/amicus. 

And by Blue Apron. For less than 10 dollars per meal, Blue Apron delivers meal kits right to your door to make cooking at home easy. Get your first THREE meals

FREE by going to BlueApron.com/amicus.

Subscribe to our podcast here. Please let us know what you think of Amicus. Our email is amicus@slate.com. Follow us at Facebook here. 

Podcast production by Tony Field.

Panoply Survey

We want you to tell us about the podcasts you enjoy, and how often you listen to them. So we created a survey that takes just a couple of minutes to complete. If you fill it out, you'll help Panoply to make great podcasts about the things you love. And things you didn’t even know you loved.  To fill out the survey, just go to www.megaphone.fm/survey.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  In this week’s episode, we return to our little role-playing experiment “You Be The Supreme Court,” using an actual case that is currently pending before the Court:  Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Inc. v. Pauley. Last time, we went through the Petitioner’s brief seeking to overturn the lower court’s decision to deny Trinity Lutheran Church the … Continue reading OA17: You Be The Supreme Court, Part 2 →

The post OA17: You Be The Supreme Court, Part 2 appeared first on Opening Arguments.

In this week’s bonus episode, we tackle the breaking legal question of whether the RNC can legally replace Donald Trump as the Republican nominee for President, and if so, what the consequences would be.  You don’t want to miss this episode! In our opening segment, we bring back a classic “Breakin’ (Down) the Law” by … Continue reading OA16: Dump Trump? →

The post OA16: Dump Trump? appeared first on Opening Arguments.

In this week’s episode, we tackle a breaking legal issue:  is Andrew’s old law school buddy Ted Cruz correct that the U.S. government just “gave away the Internet?”  (Hint:  Ted Cruz is never right about anything.)  We walk you through everything you could possibly want to know about #savetheinternet. (If you’re looking for Part 2 … Continue reading OA15: #SaveTheInternet →

The post OA15: #SaveTheInternet appeared first on Opening Arguments.

The 2016 Supreme Court term gets underway next week, but don’t get too excited. Eager to avoid any more 4-4 split decisions, the eight remaining justices have cobbled together a caseload that steers clear of the big social questions that defined the court’s past two terms. SCOTUSblog founder and publisher Tom Goldstein joins us for our annual survey of what’s ahead. 

We also speak with former federal judge Shira Scheindlin. In 2013, she ruled that stop-and-frisk tactics were being used unconstitutionally by the NYPD. Because of that ruling, she was accused this week by Donald Trump of being “very against police.” 

Transcripts of Amicus are available to Slate Plus members. Consider signing up today! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial here. 

Amicus is brought to you by The Great Courses Plus, a video learning service with

hundreds of engaging lectures taught by top professors. Get a free month of

unlimited access when you sign up at TheGreatCoursesPlus.com/amicus. 

And by Blue Apron. For less than 10 dollars per meal, Blue Apron delivers meal

kits right to your door to make cooking at home easy. Get your first THREE

meals FREE by going to BlueApron.com/amicus.  

Please let us know what you think of Amicus. Our email is amicus@slate.com. Follow us on Facebook here.

Podcast production by Tony Field.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 4th will mark the first day of oral arguments for the 2016 Supreme Court term. The Court's docket already includes major cases involving insider trading, the Fourth Amendment, the Sixth Amendment, the Eighth Amendment, criminal law, IP and patent law, the Free Exercise and Equal Protection Clauses, the Fair Housing Act, and voting rights. -- The full list of cases granted thus far for the upcoming term can be viewed on SCOTUSblog here. The panelists will also discuss the current composition and the future of the Court. -- This event was held on September 27, 2016, at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. -- Featuring: Mr. Thomas C. Goldstein, Goldstein & Russell PC; Prof. Nicholas Quinn Rosenkranz, Georgetown Law Center; Ms. Carrie Severino, Judicial Crisis Network; and Hon. George J. Terwilliger, McGuireWoods LLP. Moderator: Mr. Robert Barnes, The Washington Post.

In this episode, we try something a little bit different.  Instead of simply analyzing a case, we let you play the role of Supreme Court Justice working your way through a difficult case that is currently pending before the Court:  Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Inc. v. Pauley. You’ll learn what kind of cases make their … Continue reading OA14: You Be The Supreme Court, Part 1 →

The post OA14: You Be The Supreme Court, Part 1 appeared first on Opening Arguments.