Category: 3-LawSometimeCommentary

Katie Phang, independent journalist and trial lawyer, joins Leah to run through the week’s legal news–and there’s a lot of it! They unpack, as KBJ puts it, “this Court’s demonstrated enthusiasm for greenlighting this President’s legally dubious actions in an emergency posture” and break down the latest thirstiness from the judges angling to be Trump’s next SCOTUS pick. Then, all three hosts are joined by Strict Scrutiny’s official roadie, Chris Hayes, to talk about his book, The Sirens' Call: How Attention Became the World's Most Endangered Resource. 

Hosts’ and Guests’ Favorite Things:

• Chris: What we won on Election Day, Zohran Mamdani
• Kate: Mamdani, Trump and the End of the Old Politics, Ezra Klein & Chris Hayes (NYT); Moral Ambition: Stop Wasting Your Talent and Start Making a Difference, Rutger Bregman
• Melissa: Dirty Dancing; Ruin Their Crops on the Ground: The Politics of Food in the United States, from the Trail of Tears to School Lunch & Skimmed: Breastfeeding, Race, and Injustice, Andrea Freeman
• Leah: Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil, V.E. Schwab; Bone Valley: A True Story of Injustice and Redemption in the Heart of Florida, Gilbert King; Beyonce’s Cowboy Carter tour
• Katie: A Lawsuit against Alligator Alcatraz! (Katie’s Substack)

Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025! 

• 10/4 – Chicago

Learn more: http://crooked.com/events

Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes

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In this episode of Amicus, Dahlia Lithwick sits down with Senator Sheldon Whitehouse to dissect the most recent Supreme Court term and its implications. They explore Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson's emerging role and influence, the patterns of bias within the court that she’s calling out, and the broader systemic issues facing the judiciary. Their conversation also delves into the “worst possible nominee” for a lifetime appointment to a US court of appeals, Emil Bove. Next, they tackle climate inaction, Democrats’ failure to respond to the billionaire takeover of the Supreme Court, and why Senator Whitehouse is still optimistic about challenging, even fixing, these systems.

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The Supreme Court wraps up a momentous term. Dahlia Lithwick, Mark Joseph Stern and guests break down the cases and the controversies, explaining what it means for you, and for American democracy.

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OA1172 - It’s been two weeks since the Supreme Court decided that babies in only half of the US get to be born as citizens. We try to make sense of what they left behind in one of the most important shadow docket cases in history, and how concerned Samuel Alito should really be that the actual text of the 14th Amendment might still prevail in the end. Matt also considers how likely it is that Zohran Mamdani might lose his citizenship over his rap lyrics, and we wrap with a quick footnote combining two of our favorite things: bad AI in court and Mike Lindell.

• Trump v. CASA (6/27/25)

• Judge LaPlante’s order certifying class in Barbara v. Trump (7/10/2025)

• DOJ memo re: priorities including denaturalization (6/11/2025)

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The Birthright Citizenship case reached the Supreme Court - sort of.  The Court ruled on the executive branch’s request for a stay in response to nationwide injunctions issued by three different circuit courts, where the executive order purporting to alter more than a century’s practice regarding the Constitution’s guarantee of birthright citizenship was blocked by these courts.  In doing so the Court declined - that is, the majority declined - to address the merits.  Still, the nationwide injunction issue was addressed - at least for now..  Akhil takes the Court to task for avoiding the merits, and he offers numerous ways by which this could have been - should have been - done.  He also presents a new approach that litigants in these cases might consider as they deal with various tactics the government may employ in the service of an executive order they may not expect to be upheld.  Along the way Akhil offers some suggestions for consequences that might be faced by the executive officials, maybe not in our government as currently functioning, but at least in theory.  There’s a lot here even if what is most notable for many of us is what the Court has left hanging.  CLE credit is available for lawyers and judges from podcast.njsba.com.

We look at the final orders list before summer break, and then continue to work through last month's opinions, this time with an extended analysis of two decisions about children and culture wars -- Mahmoud v. Taylor (religious objections to LGBTQ+-inclusive books) and Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton (age verification for accessing online pornography).

OA1171 - Today's episode is a nice, fun departure from the doom and gloom. Oral arguments in a recent SCOTUS case went terribly wrong. And for once, it wasn't the court itself that was looking like a clown show. The case was AJT v Osseo and it involved disability rights. So naturally, I had to invite everyone's favorite disability rights advocate and all around all-star, Dr. Jenessa Seymour!

 

With July upon us and bad decision season (mercifully) over, Leah, Kate and Melissa take a step back to recap this year’s SCOTUS term. They highlight some of the overarching themes, break down the biggest opinions, and look back at the moments they’ll remember forever–whether they want to or not. 

Hosts’ favorite things:

• Melissa: KBJ’s footnote 12 in Stanley v. City of Sanford, Florida; Seven Chaotic Months in the Life of a New Federal Judge, Emily Bazelon and Mattathias Schwartz (NYT); This Is the Real Impact of the Supreme Court’s Planned Parenthood Decision, Linda Greenhouse (NYT); When Rational Basis Review Bit (HLR)
• Leah: A New Kind of Judicial Supremacy, Steve Vladeck (One First); With the Big, Beautiful Bill, You Can Now Sponsor a Billionaire of Your Choosing, Alexandra Petri (Atlantic); Samuel Alito Takes Pride in Gay-Bashing, Elie Mystal (The Nation); A Court Without the Range, Sherrilyn Ifill (Sherrilyn’s Newsletter); ‘A Culture of Disdain’: The Supreme Court’s Actions Speak Louder Than Its Words, Kate Shaw (NYT); Andor (Disney+); Virgin, Lorde; Trump Fragrances
• Kate: Trump’s Big Win in His Escalating War on the Press, Bob Bauer (Executive Functions); USAID study (The Lancet); Is the Supreme Court the Best Way to Get Justice? Alexis Coe (NYT); Unbearable: Five Women and the Perils of Pregnancy in America, Irin Carmon; We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution, Jill Lepore

Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025! 

• 10/4 – Chicago

Learn more: http://crooked.com/events

Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes

Follow us on Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky

Dahlia Lithwick and Mark Joseph Stern answer your questions about threats to federal judges, how far religious opt-outs can go in public schools in light of  Mahmoud v. Taylor, and whether or not the rule of law in America is, in fact, cooked. 

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