Advisory Opinions

On today’s podcast, David and Sarah briefly preview key Supreme Court arguments before diving into the 5th Circuit's stay of the new Biden administration vaccine regulations, discuss the role of race in jury challenges (with an emphasis on jury selection in the Ahmaud Arbery murder case in Georgia), and finish with the latest developments in John Durham's investigation of the Trump-Russia investig...

On today's episode, David and Sarah are on the road at the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy on the campus of the University of Tennessee. Before a live audience they discuss Supreme Court oral arguments in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, a case challenging a New York law that places strict limits on carrying guns outside the home. Plus, David and Sarah share more...

On today’s episode, David and Sarah react to the oral arguments in the Texas abortion law cases. The Supreme Court heard three hours of arguments in two different cases and from four different advocates. But after all of it, Sarah and David agree: it’s a mess…and it still doesn’t have anything to do with Roe v. Wade. They also discuss the latest grants, denials, and opinions coming down from the C...

On today’s show, it's a battle of Generation X versus millennials versus Generation Z as Sarah and David shout, "You kids get off my lawn!" But before the cultural rant, they explore parental rights in public schools, discuss the mixture of church and politics, and talk about the Kyle Rittenhouse case and the law of self-defense. Then, and only then, does Sarah lament "kids these days." Show Notes...

On today’s episode, David and Sarah celebrate the Supreme Court finally bending to their will and then preview the upcoming oral arguments regarding SB 8, the Texas abortion law. They then move on to a discussion of a wild case involving videotaping police, highlight Liberty University's problems with sexual assault, and then wonder whether an important free speech case is dead or just "mostly dea...

It’s weeping and gnashing of teeth for David in today's podcast as the Supreme Court deals a devastating blow to his dreams of abolishing qualified immunity. But Sarah saves the AO crew from despair by conducting another Supreme Court symphony regarding the Biden commission. Come for the despair, stay for the analysis, and relish a deep dive into Supreme Court reform. Show Notes: -Supreme Court or...

What do court packers have in common with Hugo Chavez? Take a listen to this action-packed pod to find out. Sarah conducts a symphony of Supreme Court commission analysis, including guiding a walk through American legal history to explain the commission’s surprisingly conservative comments. David discusses the legal issues roiling the nation’s most controversial school district. Show Notes: -Presi...

On today’s episode, we get a Supreme Court update from Sarah and not one but two entire Ted Talks from David. They cover a very obscure (yet interesting!) constitutional case, and then discuss two viral stories--one involving an elementary school and juvenile justice system in Tennessee, the other involving an absurd act of unfairness at Yale Law School. Our hosts talk poverty and privilege in the...

It's executive privilege day on Advisory Opinions! After a brief update on the Texas abortion litigation, David and Sarah "dive right in" to a discussion of the January 6 commission subpoenas and the power of Donald Trump to use executive privilege to block testimony. Our hosts also talk about how "parents and pals" help debunk a Brett Kavanaugh conspiracy theory. And they wind up with a crazy cle...

In today's pod David and Sarah discuss a federal district court injunction against Texas's heartbeat bill, dive into the deep waters of Mississippi's unbearable aquatic greed, and discuss whether ten robberies is one "occasion" for crime or, well, ten. But that's not all! They also engage in a brief but spirited debate about whether the DOJ's letter about threats against school board members. The...

On this week’s episode, Sarah is back from the Galápagos Islands just in time for the Supreme Court’s fall term. David and Sarah jump right in, starting with a rather spicy speech from Justice Samuel Alito. Our hosts also discuss a case with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, a professor who is suing UCLA, and the high court’s upcoming cases. Show Notes: -From SCOTUSblog: Alito blasts media for portr...

In a special edition of the podcast, David interviews his former colleague Greg Lukianoff, president of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. The two discuss the state of free speech on college campuses and why it’s not just a higher education issue, but one that also impacts workforces and the United States in general. And of course, lacking Sarah’s moderating influence, there are al...

In today’s episode, Sarah and David discuss a number of situations where events have proven their predictions true, starting with a challenge to the Texas abortion law and ending with a complaint over critical race theory. In between, our hosts also dissect the legal arguments underpinning the push to get Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the 2020 presidential election and discuss a new bill t...

On today’s podcast, David and Sarah discuss a host of thorny legal issues starting with an indictment against a lawyer who lied to the FBI when he alleged communications between the Trump Organization and a Russian bank. They then dig into a Second Amendment amici brief, a defamation case, and the issue of misleading headlines. Listen to the end to hear Sarah explain how to get away with murder (o...

In today’s episode, Sarah and David give you everything you need to combat half-baked hot takes about the Biden administration’s vaccine mandate as they discuss whether the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has the statutory authority to issue its rule. They then indulge in an exploration of the Commerce Clause. Lastly, our hosts discuss new legal updates to the abortion heartbe...

In today’s episode, Sarah and David discuss a fiery concurrence from Judge James Ho in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit’s opinion upholding a Texas ban on certain abortion procedures. They then discuss an indictment related to the Ahmaud Arbery killing, a death penalty case with religious liberty implications, and a Donald Trump Jr. defamation case. Lastly, listen till the end to hear...

Late Wednesday night, the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, refused to block a Texas abortion law that went into effect earlier in the day. Sarah and David engage in a very detailed discussion of Whole Woman’s Health v. Jackson, equipping intrepid listeners to combat any bad legal hot takes they might encounter. They cover what this means for states that want to challenge constitutional rights, fo...

For today’s episode, Sarah is joined by special guest Ben Folds, storied American singer-songwriter, musician, and podcaster. They discuss how failure is baked into doing science, how Folds’ song about the Mueller investigation is the perfect place to start for the law-curious, and the song-writing process. Show Notes: -Mister Peepers by Ben Folds -Still Fighting It by Ben Folds -A Dream About Lig...

Mitchell Berman, professor of law at the University of Pennsylvania’s Carey Law School, joins our hosts for a fascinating discussion on the jurisprudence of sports. In a wide-ranging discussion, David and Sarah adjudicate everything from how unwritten traditions are enforced in games to how robot umpires are changing the landscape. And of course, no sports law discussion would be complete without...

In today’s episode, Sarah takes listeners along on a wildlife rescue mission that involves a baby turtle, a surprise rain storm, and mosquito netting. But don’t worry, it has a happy ending. Our hosts then turn to the Biden administration’s proposal to tie mask mandates to civil rights law and the latest development on the “remain in Mexico” policy. Finally, Sarah and David discuss the Texas Supre...

On this episode, our hosts are joined by Matthew Barzun, an American businessman, diplomat, and longtime political fundraiser. Sarah and David dive into his paradigm-shifting book, The Power of Giving Away Power, and what it teaches about leadership. Along the way, they also discuss everything from what Barzun learned during his time fundraising for former president Barack Obama’s 2008 presidentia...

In a jam-packed episode our hosts explore everything from vaccine passports on cruise ships to a shaky argument that eviction moratoriums violate the Third Amendment’s prohibition on quartering soldiers. First up on the docket, Sarah and David dive into attempts by Sidney Powell, Rudy Giuliani, and Mike Lindell’s to dismiss Dominion’s defamation lawsuit against them. Be sure to listen to the end f...

In this episode, David and Sarah continue their August tradition of looking outside the world of legal nerdery with Jonathan Rauch, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, and author of the book The Constitution of Knowledge. Rauch has been warning about the dangers to free speech for a long time. What is the state of free speech? And how much of a threat is illiberalism? Show Notes: -Rauch’...

In today’s episode, David and Sarah discuss the Biden administration’s flip-flop on extending the eviction moratorium and how it’s almost certainly an unconstitutional violation of the nondelegation doctrine. They then take on the legal implications of Andrew Cuomo’s sexual harassment controversy, with Sarah explaining why Cuomo’s office was a textbook case of a severe and pervasive hostile work e...

Today on the pod, it’s a guest for whom David has been waiting for—Avi Loeb, an astrophysics professor at Harvard University who thinks it might just be possible that aliens have visited earth. Loeb talks about his research into Oumuamua, the first known interstellar object that’s passed through our Solar System, and gives his thoughts on the recently released UFO report from the Office of Nationa...