Advisory Opinions

Latest Episodes:

Alabama Against IVF Feb 20, 2024

Show notes

Sarah and David dive into an Alabama Supreme Court case designating embryos as minors and explain how this might affect abortion policy at large.

The Agenda:

—Has Alabama banned in vitro fertilization (IVF)?

—Sarah’s experience with IVF

—The post-Roe world

—Climate scientist wins $1 million defamation case

—Fani Willis and Nathan Wade take the stand

—Donald Trump’s corporate death penalty

—AO advice column: marrying a lawyer

Show Notes:

—David Lat's Original Jurisdiction

Today's episode is supported by Burford Capital. Follow the link to learn more: http://burfordcapital.com/ao

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Guns and the Aloha State Feb 15, 2024

Show notes

Do people have a right to gun ownership even if it conflicts the “spirit of Aloha”? Sarah and David dig into a 53-page opinion from the Supreme Court of Hawaii that teeters on the edge of defiance.

The Agenda:

—Clarifying public accommodation and the anti-Zionist bookstore

—Carrying a gun without a permit v. the Second Amendment

—The Law of the Splintered Paddle

—Bruen makes an appearance

—Trump's briefs (to the Supreme Court)

Show Notes:

Today's episode is supported by Burford Capital. Follow the link to learn more: http://burfordcapital.com/ao

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Ignore the Gaslighters on the Hur Report Feb 13, 2024

Show notes

Memory issues, ghost writers, and presidential prosecutions. Media outlets are cherry picking bits and pieces from the Hur Report on Biden’s handling of classified documents, but Sarah and David spend a full episode analyzing its legal standards and implications.

The Agenda:

—Disclosing biases

—Standards of evidence

—Biden’s too old

—Can we get the full recordings?

—No security clearance for the ghost writer

—Partisan brains reading the report

—“No Zionists Allowed” in a bookstore

Show Notes:

—The Hur report

Today's episode is supported by Burford Capital. Follow the link to learn more: http://burfordcapital.com/ao

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Do Your Job ... SCOTUS Feb 09, 2024

Show notes

Sarah and David cover the oral argument at the Supreme Court regarding the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision to block Trump from the ballot in the state.

The Agenda:

—David’s unpleasant déjà vu

—All the ways Colorado will lose

—The textualist approach

—What process is due?

—Non-Mutual Collateral Estoppel

—David responds to Justice Kagan

—Griffin’s case

—U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton

—The advocates

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Indictment Watch: No Immunity Feb 07, 2024

Show notes

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has unanimously decided that Donald Trump is not immune from prosecution. On today's emergency pod, Sarah and David react to the decision's substance and how the timing affects the election.

The Agenda:

—Timing is everything

—Word of the day: estoppel

—Will SCOTUS take the case?

—The opinion’s flaws

—Whatis a president immune from?

—What is an official act?

—The parade of horribles argument

—Why the Colorado disqualification case is relevant

—The New Yorker: Sarah Isgur's Majority Report

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The Problem With Multidistrict Litigation Feb 06, 2024

Show notes

Sarah and David invite District Judge Vince Chhabria on the pod to explain the state of multidistrict litigation and answer the question: Why does he listen to Advisory Opinions?

The Agenda:

—Justice Breyer’s jurisprudence

—Judging vs. personal value judgments

—David’s cringe a cappella group name

—Constitutionality of magistrate judges

—How to fix forum shopping

—MDLs, explained

—The pros and cons of MDLs

—How to become a judge

—Judge Chhabria’s clerk hiring process

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Reading the Founders’ Minds Feb 01, 2024

Show notes

Judge John K. Bush of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals joins Sarah to discuss the method and merits of the "history and tradition test." But first, Sarah and David dive into some Supreme Court gossip.

The Agenda:

—Addressing Justice Sotomayor's comments

—David's gross speculation

—More immigration talk

—The problem with Remain in Mexico

—Why we have hate crimes

—Tiers of scrutiny

—The problems with "history and tradition"

—How to become a clerk for Judge Bush

—How Judge Bush judges judging

Show Notes:

—Judge Bush's profile at the Federalist Society

—Turner v. United States

—R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul

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Why Our Border Is Broken Jan 30, 2024

Show notes

Sarah and David dive deep into the state of immigration law and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's legal battle with the Biden administration.

The Agenda:

—Amicus briefs for funsies

—The asylum system problem

—How to fix the crisis at the border

—The border deal in the Senate

—Civil War cosplay

—National Guard and Texit detour

—Football vs. politics redux

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What Is Religion? Jan 25, 2024

Show notes

Sarah and David discuss ~vibes~ from a recent emergency docket ruling on razor wires along the Texas border plus Judge Newsom's latest concurrence on discrimination and religious advertisements.

The Agenda:

-Judge Kyle Duncan ruling and a SCOTUS reversal

-Judge Kevin Newsom and religious advertisements

-Raising highways in Texas

-No Labels sending a letter to the DOJ

-Fifth circuit divided in free speech case

-Honoring former Solicitor General, law professor Charles Fried

-Is it okay to cry at work?

Show Notes:

-Anti-Trump Lawsuits Are 'Greatly Mistaken': An Interview With David Boies

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Big Law Has a Liberal Bias (Live from Vanderbilt University) Jan 23, 2024

Show notes

Sarah and David brave the tundras of the Vanderbilt campus to discuss left-leaning bias in pro-bono cases before diving into the details of Fulton County DA Fani Willis’ possibly salacious hires.

The Agenda:

-Left-leaning bias academic study

-Trouble in paradise for Fani Willis

-Top 10 tips from an Indiana Law Clerk

-Defining “colorable” and “to cabin”

-Alec Baldwin and new standards for Hollywood sets

-Chevron listener question

-Live Q&A

Show Notes:

-Pierson v. Post

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