Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick | Law, justice, and the courts - How The Mifepristone Case Reached SCOTUS

Well, it happened again. The hIgHeSt CoUrT will hear arguments Tuesday in a case based on made up facts! This time it’s mifepristone, the abortion drug at the center of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v FDA

The claim was that the FDA approval process (three decades ago), for mifepristone, one of two medication abortion drugs, was haphazard and slapdash.. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine also argued that the FDA’s 2021 decision to allow telemedicine abortion and mailing of abortion pills violates a 19th-century anti-vice law called the Comstock Act.

This week on the show Dahlia Lithwick speaks with Carrie N. Baker, Smith College professor and author of the forthcoming book Abortion Pills: US History and Politics. Baker says taking away the rights to access abortion pills in the mail could have catastrophic consequences for pregnant people, drug development, and privacy for all Americans.

In this week’s subscribers-only segment, Slate’s Trump Law correspondent Jeremy Stahl gives us the updates on some of the cases against the former president - including the “a lot ton” of money he owes in New York, like starting on Monday. 

Sign up for Slate Plus now to listen and support our show.

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Opening Arguments - Judge Aileen Cannon Sucks – A Definitive Guide

Who is Aileen Cannon? Why is Aileen Cannon? We answer these important questions and many more in this brief review of the incomprehensible jurisprudence of the best federal judge in Fort Pierce, Florida.

1. Aileen Cannon's Senate Judiciary Committee nomination questionnaire

2. Map of federal Southern District of Florida 

3. Democratic questioning at Aileen Cannon's group confirmation hearing

4. Judge Cannon's Order on Plaintiff's Motion for Judicial Oversight and Additional Relief (9/5/22)

5. 11th Circuit's reversal of Cannon's 9/5/22 order re: 100 classified documents (9/21/22)

6. 11th Circuit's reversal of Cannon's equitable jurisdiction ruling (12/1/22)

7. Jack Smith's Motion for Reconsideration & Stay (2/8/24)

8. Government's Opposition to Motion for Additional Time to File Certain Motions (2/8/24)

9. Judge Cannon's order denying Trump's motion to dismiss on vagueness grounds (without prejudice)(3/14/24)

10. Relevant portion of the Espionage Act

11. Judge Cannon's weird order demanding that the parties engage in a fantasy thought experiment about law that doesn't exist (3/18/24)

SCOTUScast - Garland v. Cargill – Post-Argument SCOTUScast

On February 28, 2024, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Garland v. Cargill. The Court considered whether bump stocks are considered "machineguns" as defined by Title 26 of the United States Code.

Please join us as we break down and analyze how oral argument went before the Court.

Featuring:
Stephen Halbrook, Senior Fellow, Independent Institute
(Moderator) Robert Leider, Assistant Professor of Law, George Mason University, Antonin Scalia Law School

SCOTUScast - Trump v. Anderson – Post-Decision SCOTUScast

On March 4, 2024, the Supreme Court issued its ruling in Trump v. Anderson. At issue was whether the Colorado Supreme Court erred in ordering former President Donald Trump excluded from the 2024 presidential primary ballot; the Court held that Colorado did err in excluding Trump from the ballot.

Join us to hear Professor Muller break down the decision and offer his criticism of the Court's reasoning and ruling.


Featuring:
Prof. Derek Muller, Professor of Law, Notre Dame Law School

Amarica's Constitution - Dissenting in Concurrence

The Trump v. Anderson lead balloon continues to smolder.  This episode looks at the areas wherein the concurring Justices took issue with the per curiam, and they are many.  Indeed, the three Justices who concurred only in the judgment disagree with the scope of the per curiam as well as its particulars, and their concurrence reads more like a dissent.  Can we find areas of agreement with ourselves and the concurrences?  What can we learn from all this?  CLE credit is available from podcast.njsba.com.

 

Opening Arguments - T3BE Week 6 – ROCKED by Scandal #T3BEgate2

Massive controversy shakes T3BE to its core. Thomas and Matt respond to the international outcry and media firestorm generated by allegations that T3BE is using repeat questions.

After that, we get two TOTALLY DEFINITELY NEW practice bar exam questions. Topics are appealing to SCOTUS re State constution vs. US constitution, and also the gender wage gap when it comes to bank robbery.

If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!

Opening Arguments - T3BE Week 6 – ROCKED by Scandal #T3BEgate2

Massive controversy shakes T3BE to its core. Thomas and Matt respond to the international outcry and media firestorm generated by allegations that T3BE is using repeat questions.

After that, we get two TOTALLY DEFINITELY NEW practice bar exam questions. Topics are appealing to SCOTUS re State constution vs. US constitution, and also the gender wage gap when it comes to bank robbery.

If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!

Divided Argument - Dinkus

After grappling with listener feedback ranging from the acoustic to the typographical, we catch up on last month's decisions in Great Lakes v. Raiders Retreat Realty (admiralty) and McElrath v. Georgia (double jeopardy). We then turn to last week's decisions about public officials on social media, Lindke v. Freed and O'Connor-Ratliff v. Garnier, and then finally to the statutory interpretation decision in Pulsifer v. United States. It's a lot of cases in just over an hour!

Strict Scrutiny - Welcome to Conservative Grievance Week

The Supreme Court will hear arguments this week on two First Amendment cases that ask whether the REAL victims of government coercion today are… conservatives with fringe views! Leah, Melissa, and Kate preview those cases, along with the mifepristone case the Court will hear next week. Plus, they do a deep dive on how SCOTUS uses the shadow docket to clear the way for executions.

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

  • 6/12 – NYC
  • 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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Opening Arguments - Deported by an Immigration Court in a Strip Mall

Episode 1015 Part 2 of Azul's story

Folks... I implore you. I beg of you, please listen to this one all the way through. Azul tells us the rest of her story, and talks about where she is now, and it is one of if not the most inspiring, heartwarming things I have ever had the privilege of publishing. Seriously. And please share it. Another massive thanks to Azul, and to Matt, who we are so incredibly lucky to have on the show.

If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!