Advisory Opinions

Latest Episodes:

Live from the University of Michigan Sep 27, 2022

Show notes

Sarah and David tape a live episode at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan and they have a special guest: Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Chad Readler. After making it very clear on how to pronounce the judge’s name, David and Sarah discuss what the judge look for in clerks, his career as a judge and at the Department of Justice, and Wolverine football. Stick around to the end to hear where the judge comes down on David and Sarah’s great law school debate.

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Ken Paxton’s Airing of Grievances Sep 22, 2022

Show notes

Texas joins an amici brief in Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago case, and Sarah and David ponder… why? Plus: a listener’s astute follow-up question about Yeshiva University gets the full AO treatment.

Show Notes:

-David’s French Press on “Segregation Academies”

-Trump’s response to DOJ’s motion for partial stay

-Red states amici brief for Trump v. USA

-Class action lawsuit against Ron DeSantis

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The Supreme Court Sides With Process Sep 20, 2022

Show notes

Back in the saddle, Sarah and David explain the Supreme Court’s decision on Yeshiva University v. Youth Pride Alliance (spoiler: this isn’t over yet). Plus: Who gets to censor who in the battle between Texas and tech platforms?

Show Notes:
-Yeshiva University v. Youth Pride Alliance
-NetChoice v. Ken Paxton
-Donald Trump v. the United States
-Ilya Somin Reason Magazine piece on Texas’ social media law
-Andrew Sullivan on monarchy and pre-Enlightenment institutions

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Getting Your Legal Career Started Sep 13, 2022

Show notes

While David is still away on his well-earned vacation, it’s time for some career advice! Megan L. Brown – partner at Wiley Rein LLP – joins Sarah to talk about choosing (and getting hired by) the right law firm. How to get your best self across in interviews? How to judge a firm’s work culture? Is it wise to inquire about a firm’s work-life balance? And, most importantly, should you take career pointers from Netflix’s Partner Track? All shall be answered.

Oh, and by the way, the views expressed in this episode are Megan’s and Sarah’s, they do not represent necessarily the views of Wiley Rein, its partners or clients.

Editor's Note: Views expressed are not necessarily the views of Wiley Rein, its partners or clients

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Special Master to Review Mar-a-Lago Documents Sep 08, 2022

Show notes

A federal judge ordered the appointment of a special master to review the sensitive documents seized at Mar-a-Lago. Orin Kerr, law professor at the University of California, Berkeley, joins Sarah to break down the ruling. Then, Sarah is joined by Thomas Lee, former associate chief justice of the Utah Supreme Court, for another discussion of corpus linguistics.

Show Notes:

-A Corpus Linguistic Analysis of 'Foreign Tribunal'

-Corpus Juris Advisors

-Judging Ordinary Meaning

-Data-Driven Originalism

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Trump vs. DOJ in Courtroom Battle Sep 02, 2022

Show notes

David and Sarah are here to make sense of the latest back and forth between the Justice Department and Trump’s legal team over classified documents found at Mar-a-Lago. Plus: a closer look at the legal merits of the student loan forgiveness plan and two religious liberty cases.

Show Notes:

-DOJ response to Trump's special master request

-OLC opinion on student loan forgiveness plan

-Fellowship of Christian Athletes v. San Jose Unified School District Board of Education

-Yeshiva University v. YU Pride Alliance

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Will Baude Responds to Common Good Constitutionalism Aug 30, 2022

Show notes

David and Sarah are joined by Will Baude, professor of law at the University of Chicago Law School, to discuss his review of Adrian Vermeule's new book Common Good Constitutionalism. What is “common good constitutionalism” and can David and Will convince Sarah that it’s a thing? Is international law real? And does anyone have standing in any upcoming legal challenges to President Biden’s student loan debt relief plan?

Show Notes:

-The American Prospect: What Common Good?

-Reason: The "Common-Good" Manifesto

-Ius & Iustitium: The Bourbons of Jurisprudence

-Reason: The "Common-Good" Manifesto: Vermeule Responds

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Future of Cultivated Meat Aug 25, 2022

Show notes

David and Sarah are joined by Bruce Friedrich, founder and CEO of the Good Food Institute, to discuss cultivated meat and the next agricultural revolution. What’s the difference between plant-based meat and cultivated meat? What’s the environmental impact of reimagining meat production? If it’s August, it’s our meat episode.

Show Notes:

-Bruce Friedrich’s TED Talk

-Good Food Institute

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50 Ways of No Aug 23, 2022

Show notes

David and Sarah discuss two Florida free speech cases and a very strange North Carolina one too about whether a court can strike down legislation if some of the legislators were elected from gerrymandered districts. And there's a very special guest at the end with a song to share.

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Bret Devereaux Talks Orc Battle Tactics Aug 18, 2022

Show notes

Bret Devereaux is an ancient and military historian at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and is here to discuss military tactics of some of fiction's biggest battles from The Lord of the Rings to Game of Thrones. Can David contain his excitement? Does Sarah understand anything being said?

Show Notes:

-A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry

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