Strict Scrutiny

Strict Scrutiny

Strict Scrutiny is a podcast about the United States Supreme Court and the legal culture that surrounds it. Hosted by three badass constitutional law professors-- Leah Litman, Kate Shaw, and Melissa Murray-- Strict Scrutiny provides in-depth, accessible, and irreverent analysis of the Supreme Court and its cases, culture, and personalities. Each week, Leah, Kate, and Melissa break down the latest headlines and biggest legal questions facing our country, emphasizing what it all means for our daily lives. Whether you’re a lawyer or law student, or you’re just here for the messy legal drama, Stri...

Author

Strict Scrutiny

Category

Government

Podcast website

audioboom.com

Latest episode

Jul 6, 2026

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Episodes

Our Favorite Things, 2021 20.12.2021

Leah, Melissa, and Kate round out 2021 with a discussion of their favorite things.   To wear Wool leg warmers from Lunya Washable silk pajamas from Lunya True Botanicals Kari Gran mini kit The Lady Doth Etsy shop Taylor Swift merch   To read My Monticello , by Jocelyn Nicole Johnson The Silence of the Girls , by Pat Barker The Women of Troy , by Pat Barker The 1619 Project Born on the Water , Niko...

The Marshmallow Experiment 13.12.2021

We recap the second week of the December sitting, which is (more than) enough to justify a break for the New Year! Resources: Michele Goodwin's powerful op-ed in the New York Times: " I Was Raped by My Father. An Abortion Saved My Life ." Liliana Segura's reporting on Barry Jones , whose case was consolidated with Shinn v. Ramirez Nelson Tebbe's 2008 article in the University of Pennsylvania Law R...

A Uterus, If You Can Keep It 10.12.2021

Commander Vladeck returns to break down what the Supreme Court’s decision in the SB8 case does and doesn’t mean. (Spoiler alert: Nothing good!) Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe The...

Let's Be Legends 06.12.2021

Tiffany Wright joins the show to recap last week’s oral arguments and to preview the second week of the December sitting... hijinks ensue. Strict Scrutiny depends on support from listeners. Become a Glow subscriber today for just $7/month, and get access to special live shows and virtual happy hours. Resources: " Texas Abortion Law Complicates Care for Risky Pregnancies ," by Roni Caryn Rabin. New...

Fourth Dimension Feminism 02.12.2021

Kate, Melissa, and Leah recap oral arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the Mississippi case that banned abortion after 15 weeks. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fr...

Sad Girl Autumn 29.11.2021

It’s sad girl autumn at the Supreme Court -- Melissa, Kate, and Leah preview the upcoming cases, including the frontal challenge to Roe v. Wade in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, and discuss the Court’s lack of action on the S.B. 8 cases. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/eve...

At Liberty: This Fall’s Fight Against Forced Pregnancy 22.11.2021

In October, Melissa joined the ACLU's podcast At Liberty to discuss the state of abortion rights in Texas and the rest of the nation. We're thrilled to bring the conversation to Strict Scrutiny listeners as well. The Supreme Court is gearing up to hear challenges to some state laws restricting abortion, including a case from Mississippi that directly challenges the 1973 precedent set in Roe v. Wad...

Self-Own Sam 15.11.2021

Professor Lisa Eskow joins the podcast to discuss some Justices’ willingness to engage in ecclesiastical whack-a-mole in Ramirez v. Collier. There are also birthday wishes, Big Bird (and other birds), kale shops, and more! Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Leah's...

Have They Heard of Frat Houses? 11.11.2021

Leah talks to Ahilan Arulanantham about the argument in FBI v. Fazaga, the case challenging the government’s surveillance of the Muslim community in Southern California. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conserva...

Arbitration Rat 08.11.2021

Melissa, Leah, & Kate recap the remaining cases from the first week of November -- and focus on Houston Community College and NYSRPA v. Bruen, which raises the question whether NYU has a campus. (It does.) Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless...

Foreign in a Domestic Sense 05.11.2021

Kate speaks with Juan Perla and Neil Weare about United States v. Vaello-Madero, which will be argued before the Supreme Court on November 9th. US citizens who are otherwise eligible for SSI benefits are denied solely because they live in Puerto Rico-- a US territory. Does this denial violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment? Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decision...

Some Geniuses 02.11.2021

Kate, Melissa, and Leah recap the oral arguments in the S.B. 8 cases on Monday, November 1st. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles 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 , Thre...

That’s Just Like, Your Opinion, Man 01.11.2021

Kate, Melissa, and Leah preview the whopper first week of the November sitting. They are joined by Joseph Blocher, Professor of Law at Duke Law, to discuss NYSRPA v. Bruen. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conse...

Fatally Unequal 25.10.2021

Melissa talks with Carol Anderson about her book, The Second: Race and Guns in a Fatally Unequal America . This event originally aired as a program by the Commonwealth Club of California back in July, and we're excited to bring it to Strict Scrutiny listeners ahead of Supreme Court arguments in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen on November 3rd. Get tickets for STRICT SCRU...

Watch This Space 22.10.2021

A quick breakdown on what the Court did and didn’t do today (Friday, October 22) in the cases against Texas's S.B. 8, which prohibits abortion 6 week's after the pregnant person's last period. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme...

Per My Last Email 18.10.2021

Kate, Melissa, and Leah recap the last week of the October sitting and some developments in the S.B. 8 litigation. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles 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 u...

Latte Liberal 11.10.2021

Melissa, Leah, and Kate recap the first week of the October sitting. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles 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

Troll World Tour 04.10.2021

Dahlia Lithwick joins us for a preview of this monster term, and a breakdown of … that Alito speech. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles 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...

Hashtag YOLO 27.09.2021

Recorded in partnership with the 2021 Texas Tribune festival, Dahlia Lithwick joins us to discuss the U.S. Supreme Court’s busy summer and do a lightening-round preview of 2.5 cases on the docket for the Court’s upcoming term.  Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Le...

Sounds Legit 20.09.2021

Leah is joined by Jeannie Suk Gersen and Deeva Shah to discuss an important case, Roe v. United States, about the procedures for addressing workplace misconduct in the federal courts. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Ru...

Meager Sentences 13.09.2021

Kate and Leah are joined by Elizabeth Wydra and Aaron Reichlin-Melnick to discuss more of the Supreme Court's orders coming out of the shadow docket. First up is the Migrant Protection Protocol, also known as the "Remain in Mexico" program from the Trump Administration. Then it's a look at the Court's decision to vacate the CDC's latest eviction moratorium, which allows evictions to resume. Both o...

Messing with Texas 11.09.2021

Leah, Melissa, and Kate reconvene for another emergency podcast on Texas SB8, which is now being challenged by the federal government. Y’all, they are messing with Texas! Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conserv...

Untitled Dating Show 06.09.2021

It’s law school advice time, Strict Scrutiny style! Melissa and Leah chat with Mark Moran, graduate of UVA Law and contestant on FBoy Island, for the first ever Strict Scrutiny x FBoy Island Crossover. What can law school teach you about reality TV, and reality TV teach you about law school? A lot, it turns out…. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Fra...

Flagrantly Unconstitutional 04.09.2021

Melissa, Kate, & Leah get together again to discuss the Supreme Court’s decision in the Texas SB8 case, what is happening now in Texas, and what might happen still with the law. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs...

Message Received 02.09.2021

Commander Professor Steve Vladeck joins us for an emergency episode about SB8, the most restrictive abortion law that has been allowed to go into effect since Roe v. Wade. Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!  3/6/26 – San Francisco 3/7/26 – Los Angeles Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conser...

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