In this double-guest special, David Lat shares his original reporting on the exodus of Judge Aileen Cannon’s clerks and its implications for Trump's classified documents case. Judge David Proctor of the Northern District of Alabama then joins to explain the history and function of the federal judiciary and its committees, including the Judicial Conference.
The Agenda:
—Do younger clerks just not understand hard work?
—Judge Cannon’s declining reputation
—Delays in Trump’s documents case
—How the federal judiciary came to be
—Rule-making process for the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
—Multi-district litigation and its criticisms
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Judge Cannon's Clerkship Problem

Advisory Opinions is a new podcast from The Dispatch. Hosts David French and Sarah Isgur have a weekly conversation about the law, culture, and why it matters.

News

Politics

It’s a silent spring in Texas as Pornhub pulls out of the state in an act of protest over a law requiring age verification measures. Sarah and David go through the legal battle between the explicit site and Texas AG Ken Paxton.The Agenda:
—Sarah’s high
—Texas law requiring age verification to access pornography online
—The tiers of scrutiny in constitutional law
—The role of text, history, and tradition
—Going through the Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2023
—Understanding the differences between Medicare and Medicaid can be challenging, even for lawmakersShow Notes:
—Sarah’s Remnant episode
—Jacobellis v. Ohio
—Ginsberg v. New York
—Ashcroft v. ACLU
—Child Online Protection Act
—Wickard v. Filburn Wilker
—United States v. Carolene Products Company
—David for NYT: Ban Online Porn for Kids
—David for NYT: One Party Has a Serious Foreign Policy Problem. The Other Has a Tantrum.
—A class-action lawsuit against Columbia
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Tears of Scrutiny

David returns after a brief food poisoning hiatus to discuss two oral arguments heard before the Supreme Court: Trump’s immunity case and Idaho’s case on abortion bans. But first, a request from The Dispatch’s resident Wilson-hater.
The Agenda:
—Are solo podcasters sociopaths?
—Proposals for changes on the Israeli Supreme Court
—Absolute immunity for presidents
—The role of the executive vesting clause
—Reviewing Idaho’s abortion ban
—Time, place, and manner restrictions on college campuses
—Answering questions and issuing corrections
Show Notes:
—Previous AO episode
—South Dakota v. Dole
—NFIB v. Sebelius
—Dr. Martin Luther King on “civil disobedience”
—Columbia University banned student protester over saying “Zionists don’t deserve to live”
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Pressing the SCOTUS Panic Button

The Supreme Court this week heard oral arguments for Donald Trump’s immunity case, and David has thoughts. However, he was too sick to join today so Sarah had to go solo (Ruminant style!), recapping the legal and political implications of the case, assessing the strength of the arguments and their significance for the future of our political system, and trying to imagine where we go from here in this bizarre election cycle.
The Agenda:
—Good and bad news for Trump
—What presidential acts are immune?
—Impeachment and conviction
—Going through the specific charges
—Can Trump stage a coup?
—ANSWER THE HYPOTHETICALS!
—Defining official acts
—The effect on Trump’s other cases
—The effect on SCOTUS as an institution
Show Notes:
—Bonus Collision newsletter
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Indictment Watch: Supreme Court Hears Trump’s Immunity Case

Sarah and David discuss oral arguments in Grants Pass v. Johnson, a Supreme Court case addressing the issue of homeless people camping on public property, as well as and the 4th Circuit ruling that blocked West Virginia's law blocking transgender athletes from participating in sports.
The Agenda:
—SCOTUS hears Grants Pass v. Johnson
—Necessity defense and cannibalism
—4th Circuit ruling on trans sports ban in West Virginia
—SCOTUS rules on Title VII case
—Biden expands Title IX ruling
—Campus due process and Columbia protesters
Show Notes:
—Casey Mattox on local governments stopping churches from helping the homeless
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Lady Law and Homeless Encampments

There’s not much worth discussing yet in Donald Trump’s criminal trial in New York, so Sarah and David focus on the Supreme Court and a case on Idaho’s law restricting gender-transition treatment for minors. Plus: Murmurs about Clarence Thomas’ brief absence.
The Agenda:
—Election law crimes, tax crimes, and falsification of business records
—Challenges of broad injunctions
—Idaho’s Vulnerable Child Protection Act
—SCOTUS exhausted with emergency docket applications
—Justices call to retire universal injunctions
—January 6 arguments before SCOTUS
—SCOTUS declines to intervene in a police lawsuit against a Black Lives Matter activist
—Obstructions in official proceedings
—Legal issues in the Iran-Israel conflict
Show Notes:
—Labrador v. Poe
—Counterman v. Colorado
—18 U.S. Code § 1512 - Tampering with a witness, victim, or an informant
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Judge Cannon's Clerkship Problem

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