SLAPPs: Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation. These lawsuits, often brought by the super wealthy, have been in the news a lot over the past few years, and, indeed, we've covered them before on the show. But today we're looking at it from the impact of the SLAPPee, in this case Charlotte Leslie, a former Tory MP and now Director of the Conservative Middle East Council. Her experiences shed a light on the impact these cases can have and the Kafkaesque nightmare of pursuing the truth in our Byzantine criminal justice system.

Register for a ticket to Law & Disorder LIVE! – in association with Tideway – by clicking here.

If you have questions, criticisms, praise or other feedback, please do send your thoughts to us via [email protected]!

Law and Disorder is a Podot podcast.

Hosted by: Charlie Falconer, Helena Kennedy, Nicholas Mostyn.

Executive Producer and Editor: Nick Hilton.

Associate Producer: Ewan Cameron.

Music by Richard Strauss, arranged and performed by Anthony Willis & Brett Bailey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alastair Campbell has worn many hats: journalist, bagpiper, political operator, Burnley ultra, and, most recently, podcaster. This varied CV has brought him into frequent contact with power and infrequent contact with the law. In this episode, a wide-ranging season opener, he talks candidly with Charlie, Helena and Nick about his life in politics, his fears for the current state of play, and his optimism about how things can be turned around. The conversation covers everything from comparisons between Keir Starmer and Tony Blair and thoughts for combatting Reform, to whether he got on with Jonathan Sumption during the Hutton inquiry!

Register for a ticket to Law & Disorder LIVE! – in association with Tideway – by clicking here.

If you have questions, criticisms, praise or other feedback, please do send your thoughts to us via [email protected]!

Law and Disorder is a Podot podcast.

Hosted by: Charlie Falconer, Helena Kennedy, Nicholas Mostyn.

Executive Producer and Editor: Nick Hilton.

Associate Producer: Ewan Cameron.

Music by Richard Strauss, arranged and performed by Anthony Willis & Brett Bailey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Birthright citizenship is an important Constitutional right in the United States, but one that is increasingly challenged under the second Trump presidency. In this episode, we re-convene with David D. Cole, a top constitutional lawyer and former Legal Director of the ACLU, to discuss the case of Trump v CASA, a Supreme Court case which addressed whether lower courts could issue 'universal injunctions' to block nationwide enforcement of policies, and more generally how the Supreme Court is managing the tricky relationship with the man in the Oval Office.

If you have questions, criticisms, praise or other feedback, please do send your thoughts to us via [email protected]!

Law and Disorder is a Podot podcast.

Hosted by: Charlie Falconer, Helena Kennedy, Nicholas Mostyn.

Executive Producer and Editor: Nick Hilton.

Associate Producer: Ewan Cameron.

Music by Richard Strauss, arranged and performed by Anthony Willis & Brett Bailey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Few social issues have proven quite as controversial or emotional as the fraught subject of gender dysphoria treatment for minors. In both the UK and US, the question has vexed doctors, lawyers and politicians. The balance between the medical and psychological wellbeing of trans youngsters presents unique challenges for physicians and legislators, and it feels like we are yet to alight upon a compassionate solution. To discuss, the Law & Disorder team are joined by two great experts from either side of the pond. David D. Cole is a top US constitutional lawyer and former National Legal Director of the ACLU, who has brought challenges to the absolutist position of American state legislators; Hilary Cass is a retired paediatrician and author of the Cass Review into gender care in England, who now sits alongside Charlie and Helena in the House of Lords. In this discussion, they probe the position of both courts and the medical services, in the hope that clarity might be found in such a challenging issue.

If you have questions, criticisms, praise or other feedback, please do send your thoughts to us via [email protected]!

Law and Disorder is a Podot podcast.

Hosted by: Charlie Falconer, Helena Kennedy, Nicholas Mostyn.

Executive Producer and Editor: Nick Hilton.

Associate Producer: Ewan Cameron.

Music by Richard Strauss, arranged and performed by Anthony Willis & Brett Bailey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump is desecrating the United States' fundamental belief in due process – or, at least, he's trying to. Standing in his way are a number of obstacles, including the constitution, the courts, and his former comms director, Anthony Scaramucci, who has become a vociferous critic of his old boss. After just 11 days in the role – a unit of time now known as "a Scaracmucci" – Anthony was sacked and liberated to pursuit a vibrant media career that has seen him become an internationally recognised truth-teller. He joins the podcast this week to reflect on Trump's second term, America's historical relationship with the rule of law, and whether democracy is imperilled by forces within the White House.

If you have questions, criticisms, praise or other feedback, please do send your thoughts to us via [email protected]!

Law and Disorder is a Podot podcast.

Hosted by: Charlie Falconer, Helena Kennedy, Nicholas Mostyn.

Executive Producer and Editor: Nick Hilton.

Associate Producer: Ewan Cameron.

Music by Richard Strauss, arranged and performed by Anthony Willis & Brett Bailey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why is cannabis illegal in the UK? This is a vexed question that dates back to colonial times but continues to be a hot button issue in the present day. Indeed, Charlie Falconer recently chaired a report for the London Drugs Commission on this very topic, recommending that cannabis possession be decriminalised but dealing remain outlawed. Is this an elegant solution or a mealy-mouthed fudge? To debate the issue, Charlie is joined by his regular companions – Nicholas Mostyn and Helena Kennedy – as well as Professor Mike Barnes, a renowned neurologist with a particular interest in medical cannabis, and Peter Reynolds, president of the cannabis campaign group CLEAR UK.

If you have questions, criticisms, praise or other feedback, please do send your thoughts to us via [email protected]!

Law and Disorder is a Podot podcast.

Hosted by: Charlie Falconer, Helena Kennedy, Nicholas Mostyn.

Executive Producer and Editor: Nick Hilton.

Associate Producer: Ewan Cameron.

Music by Richard Strauss, arranged and performed by Anthony Willis & Brett Bailey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is sports a law unto itself? That's the question posed this week, as the Law & Disorder crew are joined by Nick De Marco KC, perhaps the UK's top sports lawyer. Nick has worked on cases ranging from corrupt cricketers to fiscally feckless football clubs, and offers here a tour d'horizon of the landscape in sports and the law. Should betting companies offer markets on yellow cards? Did Jannick Sinner get off lightly with his doping ban? Will a judgment ever be delivered on Manchester City's PSR violations? Nick, along with Nicholas Mostyn, Helena Kennedy and Charlie Falconer, knock all these issues for six on an end-to-end episode of Law & Disorder.

If you have questions, criticisms, praise or other feedback, please do send your thoughts to us via [email protected]!

Law and Disorder is a Podot podcast.

Hosted by: Charlie Falconer, Helena Kennedy, Nicholas Mostyn.

Executive Producer and Editor: Nick Hilton.

Associate Producer: Ewan Cameron.

Music by Richard Strauss, arranged and performed by Anthony Willis & Brett Bailey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Media freedom around the world has never been more embattled. A rise in violence perpetrated against journalists and media proprietors has been accompanied by a significant surge in the use of 'lawfare', frivolous but destructive lawsuits designed to silence and intimidate. To discuss this crisis, the Law & Disorder team are joined by Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC, a leading lawyer representing accused or imprisoned journalists or bereaved families, and Sebastien Lai, the son of Jimmy Lai, a Hong Kong businessman and media entrepreneur who has been imprisoned by authorities. Caoifhionn and Sebastien discuss their own struggle to free Jimmy Lai from where he is being held in solitary confinement, a case which illuminates the current assault on the rights and safety of those who hold the powerful to account.

If you have questions, criticisms, praise or other feedback, please do send your thoughts to us via [email protected]!

Law and Disorder is a Podot podcast.

Hosted by: Charlie Falconer, Helena Kennedy, Nicholas Mostyn.

Executive Producer and Editor: Nick Hilton.

Associate Producer: Ewan Cameron.

Music by Richard Strauss, arranged and performed by Anthony Willis & Brett Bailey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With climate change an ever increasing priority for people and governments around the globe, it is necessarily becoming a major part of our legal system. How do treaties like the Paris Agreement bind countries to climate goals? Can people – old and young – use the law to hold the state to account over climate action? And, in a world where climate change denial is increasingly mainstream from politicians, can the law offer a check to the spread of that rhetoric? To discuss all this, Nicholas, Helena and Charlie are joined by Lord Carnwath, to discuss everything from Donald Trump's denialism to Tony Blair's interventions.

If you have questions, criticisms, praise or other feedback, please do send your thoughts to us via [email protected]!

Law and Disorder is a Podot podcast.

Hosted by: Charlie Falconer, Helena Kennedy, Nicholas Mostyn.

Executive Producer and Editor: Nick Hilton.

Associate Producer: Ewan Cameron.

Music by Richard Strauss, arranged and performed by Anthony Willis & Brett Bailey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tariffs: a word that has become, in the past few months, a political hot potato. With US President Donald Trump slapping major tariffs on countries all around the world, the Law & Disorder crew gather to consider these moves in their historical context and probe their legality. Nicholas Mostyn and Charlie Falconer are – regrettably – missing Helena this week, but we have two guests to compensate: Thomas Sebastian, barrister and expert in tariffs, and Edward Stourton, presenter of Radio 4's Sunday, who is currently writing a book about American political history.

If you have questions, criticisms, praise or other feedback, please do send your thoughts to us via [email protected]!

Law and Disorder is a Podot podcast.

Hosted by: Charlie Falconer, Helena Kennedy, Nicholas Mostyn.

Executive Producer and Editor: Nick Hilton.

Associate Producer: Ewan Cameron.

Music by Richard Strauss, arranged and performed by Anthony Willis & Brett Bailey.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.