Good Law | Bad Law - Aaron Freiwald

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Good Law | Bad Law #67 - The Argument For Impeaching Justice Clarence Thomas W/ Jill Abramson Mar 02, 2018

Show notes

Aaron Freiwald, Managing Partner of Freiwald Law and host of the weekly podcast series Good Law | Bad Law, is joined by Jill Abramson, the former Executive Editor at the New York Times, to talk about her recent article in New York Magazine calling for the impeachment of Justice Clarence Thomas.

Before Jill became the first female editor in New York Times history, she wrote a book called “Strange Justice” where she examined Clarence Thomas’s testimony at his confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice 25 years ago. In the book Jill and her co-author Jane Mayer say Justice Thomas perjured himself with his testimony regarding Anita Hill.

Jill’s latest 4,000-word cover story in New York Magazine thrusts this discussion back into the spotlight re-igniting the debate on impeaching Justice Thomas. When Jill wrote her book “Strange Justice” in 1994, the #MeToo movement hadn’t been born yet. Now with so many women coming forward to name their abusers and to bring attention to the problem of sexual harassment this might be the perfect time to re-raise the topic and explore the subject.

Listen in as Aaron and Jill discuss Justice Clarence Thomas’s confirmation hearings and time serving on the Supreme Court.

Note* The audio improves in the middle of the episode.

To purchase a copy of Jill’s book, click the link below:

Strange Justice: The Selling of Clarence Thomas

Remember to tune in every Friday for new episodes of Good Law | Bad Law!

Host: Aaron Freiwald

Guest: Jill Abramson

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Good Law | Bad Law #66 - Let them eat cake? The Supreme Court weighs free expression versus non discrimination W/ Rod Smolla Feb 23, 2018

Show notes

Aaron Freiwald, Managing Partner of Freiwald Law and host of the weekly podcast series Good Law | Bad Law, is joined by Rod Smolla, Dean of the Widener University Law School in Delaware, to discuss the Masterpiece Cakeshop case that was recently argued before the U.S. Supreme Court.

If you are unfamiliar with the case you can learn more about it here. But, as a brief background, the Masterpiece Cakeshop is a bakery in Colorado that custom makes wedding cakes. A gay couple went to the shop to order a custom cake for their wedding. When they explained what they wanted, the owner of the store refused to make the custom wedding cake; he would however sell them one of their pre-made cakes. Same-sex marriage was not recognized in Colorado at this time and the owner of the bakery, Jack Phillips, said he didn’t support same sex marriages due to his religion.

Jack C. Phillips, views his cakes as works of art and believes by making a custom cake for a gay couple’s wedding, it would be seen as him endorsing their marriage. Because of that, he didn’t feel comfortable making the custom wedding cake for the couple.

The case has made it all the way to the Supreme Court and was argued on December 5th, 2017. It’s a very tough case to predict because it pits a few fundamental values against each other. On one hand, we have the first amendment which protects our religious freedoms and the freedom to say (and not say) what we want. On the other hand, we value everyone in our country as equal, regardless of their sexual preference, skin color, gender, or anything else. Because of that, businesses can’t discriminate who they sell to or do work for.

Dean Smolla does a fantastic job breaking down the facts of the case and explaining the challenges the Supreme Court is facing with this case.

Read the briefs here:

BRIEF IN OPPOSITION

BRIEF FOR RESPONDENT COLORADO CIVIL RIGHTS COMMISSION

BRIEF FOR PETITIONERS

To hear more about Barnett Case discussed in the episode, listen here:

https://thelawmatters.podbean.com/e/good-law-bad-law-44-taking-a-knee-first-amendment-rights-in-school-w-josh-kershenbaum-grace-osa-edoh/

Remember to tune in every Friday for new episodes of Good Law | Bad Law!

Host: Aaron Freiwald

Guest: Rod Smolla

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Good Law | Bad Law #65 - The #MeToo Movement W/ Tracey Diamond Feb 16, 2018

Show notes

Aaron Freiwald, Managing Partner of Freiwald Law and host of the weekly podcast series Good Law | Bad Law, is joined by Tracey Diamond, who is Of Counsel at the law firm Pepper Hamilton in Philadelphia.

Tracey practices employment discrimination law at Pepper Hamilton and also provides human resources counseling to businesses. She also regularly counsels clients on workplace issues like sexual harassment. Because of her experience we thought she would be the perfect person to bring on to discuss the #MeToo movement.

Because sexual harassment is the core problem the #MeToo movement is addressing, Aaron and Tracey start the episode by defining what sexual harassment is. Tracey explains that sexual harassment is a form of discrimination that is addressed under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Title VII divides sexual harassment into two categories, Quid Pro Quo which is when an employee is forced to do something or face a consequence: “do this or you’re fired” or “do this and you get a promotion.” Second, is a hostile work environment which means events have transpired and the employee doesn’t feel comfortable in the work environment anymore.

Tracey explains throughout the episode what steps employers can take to reduce the risk of these issues occurring and what steps employees can take if they face sexual harassment in the workplace.

To learn more about the #MeToo movement visit their website: https://metoomvmt.org/

To learn more about the Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund visit their website: https://www.timesupnow.com/

To contact Tracey directly you can email her at: diamondt@pepperlaw.com

Join Aaron Freiwald and Tracey Diamond to learn more about the law behind the #MeToo movement and what we can do to put an end to this problem.

Remember to tune in every Friday for new episodes of Good Law | Bad Law!

Host: Aaron Freiwald

Guest: Tracey Diamond

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Good Law | Bad Law #64 - Vigilantism W/ Paul Robinson Feb 09, 2018

Show notes

Aaron Freiwald, Managing Partner of Freiwald Law and host of the weekly podcast series Good Law | Bad Law, is joined by Paul Robinson, a Law Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and the author of the new book “Shadow Vigilantes: How distrust in the justice system breeds a new kind of lawlessness.” Paul is here today to talk about vigilantism and its impact on society.

Aaron and Paul start the episode by briefly explaining our criminal justice system; how the state or government takes on the role of plaintiff in criminal cases on behalf of the people. This responsibility makes it so citizens don’t have to be their own police force, it provides a sense of order.

When the government fails to provide justice to its citizens, or when citizens don’t believe justice has been served, they may turn to a form of vigilantism. It’s this act, the act of people taking the law into their own hands, that Paul’s book examines.

Paul explains two types of vigilantism. Classic vigilantism generally involves a group of people that has been ignored by society and they have to protect themselves. This can be seen during the Civil Rights Movement, where African American citizens were being targeted by the police and treated unfairly; and in the Gay Rights Movement when LGBT individuals were being targeted by the police without cause. In these two scenarios, these groups had to protect themselves from the government that was supposed to be there to protect them.

The second type of vigilantism is shadow vigilantism or community vigilantism. This is the type of vigilantism that can cause problems in our society because its root cause is less obvious. Rather than a group of people taking action to protect themselves, this involves individuals taking action, taking the law into their own hands due to a perceived injustice.

Join Aaron Freiwald and Paul Robinson for this great conversation about vigilantism. To learn more about vigilantism, read Paul’s book, “Shadow Vigilantes: How distrust in the justice system breeds a new kind of lawlessness.”

Paul’s book: https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Vigilantes-Distrust-Justice-Lawlessness-ebook/dp/B0738KG5QM

Remember to tune in every Friday for new episodes of Good Law | Bad Law!

Host: Aaron Freiwald

Guest: Paul Robinson

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Good Law | Bad Law #63 - Wrongful Prolongation of Life W/ Tim Barnes Feb 02, 2018

Show notes

Aaron Freiwald, Managing Partner of Freiwald Law and host of the weekly podcast series Good Law | Bad Law, is joined by Tim Barnes, of counsel at the Porzio firm in NJ, who is working on a ground-breaking case for wrongful prolongation of life.

Ms. Stica was an 89-year-old woman when she was admitted to the hospital. Before her admission, she had signed a DNR which means, physicians were not supposed to make any extraordinary efforts to save her life if something were to happen while she was in the hospital.

Unfortunately, the physicians at the hospital did not honor the DNR request because her chart had not been properly marked. While in the hospital, Ms. Stica went into cardiac arrest. Because her chart was not properly marked, the physicians did everything they could to save her life, and they succeeded. They got Ms. Stica’s heart beating again and called Ms. Stica’s daughter with the good news.

The physicians realized their mistake when Ms. Stica’s Daughter told them her mother had a DNR. Unfortunately, Ms. Stica lived in pain for another 6 months before finally passing away at a nursing home.

The case that Tim has brought forward on behalf of Ms. Stica is one of the first cases where wrongful prolongation of life has been claimed and if successful, it will have a huge impact in our legal system for years to come.

To learn more about the cases mentioned in the episode click the links below:

Stica case: https://www.law.com/njlawjournal/sites/njlawjournal/2017/10/13/nj-judge-recognizes-cause-of-action-for-wrongful-prolongation-of-life/?back=law

Berman Case: https://law.justia.com/cases/new-jersey/supreme-court/1979/80-n-j-421-0.html

Join Aaron Freiwald and Tim Barnes from the Porzio firm as they discuss wrongful prolongation of life.

Remember to tune in every Friday for new episodes of Good Law | Bad Law!

Host: Aaron Freiwald

Guest: Tim Barnes

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Good Law | Bad Law #62 - Libel Laws W/ Jim Beasley Jr. Jan 26, 2018

Show notes

Aaron Freiwald, Managing Partner of Freiwald Law and host of the weekly podcast series Good Law | Bad Law, is joined by Jim Beasley Jr. from The Beasley Firm in Philadelphia to talk about libel laws.

Inspired by the book “Fire and Fury” and President Donald Trump’s reaction to the book (the president proclaimed we need to toughen up libel laws in the country), Aaron wanted to talk to an expert on libel laws to see what the President would have to prove in order to have a libel case.

Jim starts the episode by explaining the difference between libel and slander before going into the different criteria that have to be met for public figures vs. private individuals. He also explains the differences between bringing a case against a news source or a publisher vs. bringing a case against a private person.

Jim also briefly explains the history of one of the landmark libel lawsuits in our country New York Times Co. v Sullivan (https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/376/254/case.html)

Join Aaron Freiwald and Jim Beasley Jr. from The Beasley Firm here in Philadelphia as they discuss libel laws.

Remember to tune in every Friday for new episodes of Good Law | Bad Law!

Host: Aaron Freiwald

Guest: Jim Beasley Jr.

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Good Law | Bad Law #61 - 25th Amendment & President Trump's Mental Fitness W/ Richard Painter Jan 23, 2018

Show notes

Aaron Freiwald, Managing Partner of Freiwald Law and host of the weekly podcast series Good Law | Bad Law, is joined by former White House Chief Ethics Counselor Richard Painter to talk about the 25th Amendment and President Trump’s mental fitness to serve.

From 2005 – 2007 Richard served as Chief Ethics Counselor to President George W. Bush and currently he is a professor at the University of Minnesota. In an exclusive interview, Richard and Aaron discuss the 25th Amendment and the steps involved in removing a President for mental unfitness.

He explains how Congress has an ethical and legal responsibility to hold immediate hearings to determine whether the provisions of the 25th Amendment – which have never been invoked to remove a President – should now be used to remove President Trump.

Aaron and Richard also talk about the other times in our history when the 25th Amendment has been used. When there have been health emergencies, surgeries, and times when the President was unable to make decisions temporarily, the 25th Amendment was used to transfer power to the Vice President for a short period of time.

Join Aaron Freiwald and Richard Painter for this bonus episode of Good Law | Bad Law as they discuss the 25th Amendment and President Donald Trump.

Remember to tune in every Friday for new episodes of Good Law | Bad Law!

Host: Aaron Freiwald

Guest: Richard Painter

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Good Law | Bad Law #60 - Racial Inequality In The Legal System W/ David Rudovsky Jan 19, 2018

Show notes

Aaron Freiwald, Managing Partner of Freiwald Law and host of the weekly podcast series Good Law | Bad Law, is joined by a man you may know from the recent Netflix documentary Wormwood, David Rudovsky. David Rudovsky has been an attorney in the Philadelphia area for the past 50 years and a law professor at the University of Pennsylvania for the past 30. David is here today to talk about racial inequality in our criminal justice system and what is being done about it.

David Rudovsky and Aaron start the episode by discussing a report from the U.S. Sentencing Commission that recently came out that outlines some of the disparities in arrest rates and sentencing between black individuals and white individuals. David explains the report shows black individuals receive on average a 19% longer sentence than white individuals and even when you control for all other factors and leave it up to judge’s discretion sentences are still 15-17% longer.

During the episode David and Aaron talk about how certain crimes are punished harder than other similar crimes. For example, possession of “crack” is punished 10 times harder than someone being charged with possession of cocaine because crack is seen as a “black drug”.

Along with racial biases and racial disparities in our legal system, we also see a system that works against those in a lower socio-economic class. Our system requires people to pay bail to get themselves out of jail during the time between arrest and trial.

Those individuals in a lower socio-economic class are less likely to be able to afford the bail and are forced to spend time in jail, even if they’ve committed no crime. Because of this, they become more affected because they lose their jobs, are unable to pay their bills and support their families, and have to explain, when they do get out, why they have been out of work for an extended period of time.

This is a fascinating episode with an incredibly knowledgeable individual. Join Aaron Freiwald and David Rudovsky for a great discussion about racial disparities in our legal system.

Remember to tune in every Friday for new episodes of Good Law | Bad Law!

Host: Aaron Freiwald

Guest: David Rudovsky

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Good Law | Bad Law #59 - The Jury Trial W/ Judge Mark Bernstein Jan 12, 2018

Show notes

Aaron Freiwald, Managing Partner of Freiwald Law and host of the weekly podcast series Good Law | Bad Law, is joined by Judge Mark Bernstein to talk about the importance of jury trials in our legal system.

Judge Bernstein and Aaron talk about how, even though fewer cases are being tried by a jury, the jury trial still plays a very important role. For instance, one of the ways lawyers determine how much to settle a case for is based on the amounts awarded by juries in past cases. Knowing this information helps the defense avoid the risk of paying too much and helps the plaintiffs avoid the risk of receiving too little.

The jury trial is also a great incentive for lawyers to settle cases that may not otherwise have been settled. Judge Bernstein talks about a few cases that he has seen that would have never settled had a jury trial not been on the horizon.

Judge Bernstein and Aaron also highlight an observation they’ve both made in courtrooms and that is, even though people may see jury duty as a burden, they try to avoid it however they can, once they get selected to serve on a jury, they take that responsibility very seriously. It’s one of the things that makes our legal system so great and people do understand that.

Join Aaron Freiwald and Judge Bernstein for a in incredibly fascinating and enlightening conversation about our legal system.

Remember to tune in every Friday for new episodes of Good Law | Bad Law!

Host: Aaron Freiwald

Guest: Judge Mark Bernstein

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Good Law | Bad Law #58 - Social Security Disability W/ Thomas Giordano Jan 05, 2018

Show notes

Aaron Freiwald, Managing Partner of Freiwald Law and host of the weekly podcast series Good Law | Bad Law, is joined by Thomas Giordano, Jr., a Partner at Pond Lehocky Stern Giordano, who focuses his practice on Social Security Disability cases.

Tom tells us that he became a lawyer because his mother worked at a law firm and he became inspired at a young age. When he started at Pond Lehocky, 14 years ago, one of the partners wanted to start a division that focused on helping people with Social Security Disability claims. As a first-year associate, he volunteered to take on the challenge.

14 years later, Tom is still working on Social Security Disability cases and is now a partner at the firm. He explains what goes into a SSDI case and some of the requirements for receiving SSDI, such as being unable to work for at least 12 months.

Tom and Aaron discuss some of the myths and misconceptions involving people receiving Social Security Disability. Some people assume disability recipients are lazy, that they are living the “high life” while they are out of work, and that they are milking the system because they really can work.

Aaron and Tom also discuss the impact of the Affordable Care Act on disability claim cases and what would happen if efforts to repeal Obamacare are successful.

Join Aaron Freiwald and Thomas Giordano for a great discussion about SSDI and what it means to everyone in our country.

Remember to tune in every Friday for new episodes of Good Law | Bad Law!

Host: Aaron Freiwald

Guest: Thomas Giordano

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