Law & Court Cases
Major trials, Supreme Court decisions, European judgments, privacy law and legal analysis.
About this list
This reading list brings together items from the sources selected for Law & Court Cases. Open each item at its original source for the complete article, episode or video. This is a selection of current coverage, not a complete archive.
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Not a MAGA Court
Elie Honig, CNN’s chief legal analyst, joins David French fresh off jury duty to discuss his piece for New York Magazine on how worried we should be about election challenges ahead of the midterms. The two also discuss the Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision on third-country removals, do some level-setting on the civil lawsuit against Cornell University over an alleged gang rape, and participate in a Star Wars SCOTUS draft.
We Need to Talk About Ethics Reform
In the fifth and final installment of our Hot Supreme Court Reform series, Kate speaks with Gabe Roth, executive director of Fix the Court. What would a meaningful and enforceable set of ethics rules look like for the Supreme Court justices? Why isn’t there an Inspector General for the judiciary? How are there no real rules around recusals? Roth makes the case for these nonpartisan reforms and more.
John Yoo Wrote the Torture Memos and Never Paid for It. At All
VR45 - Today on Vapid Response: 25 years after the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, we look back on the Forrest Gump of monstrously bad legal takes: former DOJ lawyer and current UC Berkeley law professor (!) John Yoo. We go back to the primary sources to show how the Office of Legal Counsel explicitly authorized torture, indefinite detention in Guantanamo Bay, and warrantless surveillance of U.S.
Lawfare Live: Debriefing the D.C. Circuit's Argument Over Contempt Inquiry
On September 29 at 9:30 a.m. ET, the full D.C. Circuit will hear oral argument over Judge Boasberg's inquiry into whether top Trump administration officials committed criminal contempt when they sent 137 Venezuelans to CECOT, a notorious El Salvador prison. Lawfare Editor in Chief Benjamin Wittes sat down with Senior Editors Anna Bower, Roger Parloff, and Molly Roberts to break down what happened. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Lawfare Daily: The Policy Implications of the AI Vibe Shift
Listen to Lawfare Daily: The Policy Implications of the AI Vibe Shift from The Lawfare Podcast. Lawfare Senior Editor Kevin Frazier is joined by Scaling Laws co-host Assemblyman Alex Bores of New York, AVERI Director of U.S. Policy Nat Purser, and Institute of Law and AI Managing Director of U.S. Law Mackenzie Arnold to discuss recent developments in the AI risk environment, what led us here, and what comes next for domestic and AI foreign policy.
Is Press Access a Constitutional Right?
David French talks to CNN’s chief legal analyst, Elie Honig, at a time when CNN is in the news following President Donald Trump’s ban of the cable network from the White House. Honig takes us through CNN’s lawsuit seeking to regain access and the First Amendment argument media outlets are making. The two also discuss the Supreme Court’s ruling on the Missouri redistricting case, and Sarah Isgur makes a provocative argument that may trigger any true crime fans.
From Toga Guy to John Hinckley: A History of Pleading Insanity
OA1300 - The “insanity defense” might sound like a relic of a time when mental illness was viewed through the lens of demons and witches, and it turns out it is… but also maybe it’s kind of woke? Jenessa walks us through the history of Old English and Early American iterations of the defense, various tests that are applied today, and what happens afterwards that most people don’t get to see.
A New Term of Supreme Chaos
It’s been a long summer, but Leah, Kate and Melissa are back together to break down the biggest cases and legal battles coming to the Supreme Court this term. Starting in October, the justices will hear challenges involving AR-15s and semi-automatic rifles, religious exemptions for schools receiving government funding, and the latest redistricting fights in Missouri and the 8th Circuit. Plus, Trump’s big arch updates and allegations that a government contractor illegally funneled nearly $200,000 to a Susan Collins super PAC.
Lawfare Archive: Mikhail Zygar on Putin, the Russia-Ukraine War, and Press Freedom
Listen to Lawfare Archive: Mikhail Zygar on Putin, the Russia-Ukraine War, and Press Freedom from The Lawfare Podcast. From April 23, 2025: On today’s episode, Mikhail Zygar, a renowned Russian journalist living in exile in the U.S. and the author of multiple books on Vladimir Putin, joined Lawfare Associate Editor Olivia Manes to discuss his experience as the founder of one of the last independent Russian media channels, TV Rain.
Lawfare Archive: Robert Mahari on Addictive Intelligence, Digital Attachment Disorders, and Other AI-related Concerns
Listen to Lawfare Archive: Robert Mahari on Addictive Intelligence, Digital Attachment Disorders, and Other AI-related Concerns from The Lawfare Podcast. From October 1, 2024: Robert Mahari, a joint JD-PhD candidate at the MIT Media Lab and Harvard Law School, joins Kevin Frazier, Assistant Professor at St. Thomas University College of Law and a Tarbell Fellow at Lawfare, to explain how increased use of AI agents may lead humans to form troublingly and even addictive relationships with artificial systems.
Everybody Out of the Pool
President Trump announced on Truth Social that he was banning CNN, Politico, and MSNow from the White House because he didn't like their coverage. Within days, a federal judge ordered the outlets be reinstated—but the White House dragged its feet. Hours later, reporters were still locked out and a state dinner with President Xi of China went ahead without them.
He Went to Prison for Bribing Susan Collins. She's... Totally Fine Somehow?
OA1299 - This week on Rapid Response Friday: what crimes might Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) have been complicit in, and why won't she ever be prosecuted for any of them? We go deeper into the law behind the facts exposed in ProPublica's outstanding investigation into her SuperPAC's coordination of illegal campaign contributions from a naval defense contractor.
Rational Security: “The Right Kind of American for Rational Security” Edition
Listen to Rational Security: “The Right Kind of American for Rational Security” Edition from The Lawfare Podcast. This week, Scott sat down with his Lawfare colleagues Executive Editor Natalie Orpett and Public Service Fellow Julia Curlee to talk through the week’s big news in national security, including:“The Xi-Quel.” This week, Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in Washington for a three-day state visit—his first to the U.S.
Lawfare Daily: The Houthi War Against Saudi Arabia
Listen to Lawfare Daily: The Houthi War Against Saudi Arabia from The Lawfare Podcast. For today’s episode, Lawfare Foreign Policy Editor Daniel Byman interviews Gregory Johnsen, non-resident fellow at the Arab Gulf State Institute, to discuss the current war in Yemen. The two discuss the latest developments in the war, the reasons for the Houthis’ successes so far, the dilemmas facing Saudi Arabia, and why the situation has gone from bad to worse.To receive ad-free podcasts, become a Lawfare Material Supporter at www.patreon.com/lawfare.
Third Time’s the Charm?
Sarah Isgur and David French discuss the Missouri redistricting case now that the 8th Circuit has weighed in. Let’s stipulate that everything is a mess. Then, the two go through a few listener mailbag questions, including controversial school murals, marijuana law, and court packing. The Agenda: –SCOTUSblog coverage on the redistricting case –India’s Supreme Court, standing doctrine, and stagnation –The Rohrabacher–Farr Amendment and David being wrong –Sarah’s favorite sentence and Judge Jeff Sutton
We Need To Talk About Jurisdiction Stripping
In the fourth installment of our Hot Supreme Court Reform September series, Leah sits down with former FTC Chair Lina Khan and Lev Menand, both of Columbia Law School, to talk through ways to limit how much SCOTUS can mess with federal agencies. Lev makes the case for stripping SCOTUS of its jurisdiction over administrative law and sending those cases to a specialized court, and Lina discusses venue and standing issues—reforming who gets to sue and where.
Are Marijuana Contracts Legal in Federal Court?
Sarah Isgur and David French discuss the upcoming “long conference” that marks the unofficial start to the new Supreme Court term, a prosecutor being referred to the Department of Justice for obstruction of justice, and a review of several circuit-court cases, including breaches of contract between marijuana-related businesses. Crime versus commerce reaches the courts. The Agenda: –Hello Justice John Marshall –What is vulgar student speech? –“There are only two genders” and race-neutral criteria –Prosecutor referred to the DOJ
The USPS Ballot Scheme Was Even Worse Than You Thought
OA1298 - Voting rights attorney Jenessa is back with a sprawling tour of election chaos, starting with the Supreme Court's unsigned order in USPS v. California: nobody knows the vote count, and the real fight on the merits waits for 2028. Then: the USPS whistleblower letter reveals a system built on oral-only instructions and batch ballot rejection for any single problem, from a mismatch to a misscanned barcode. Meanwhile, a district court in DSCC v. Trump adds another layer: an injunction that even bars states from volunteering.
Trump’s Assault on the Free Press
Melissa and Leah cover this week’s legal horrors out of the Trump administration, including the President’s ban on certain media outlets from the White House, as well as his attacks on the Kennedy Center and the Presidential Records Act. Also covered: Kash Patel on bestiality, ammosexual wins of the week, a proposed ballot measure in Idaho to protect reproductive freedom, and Donald Trump Jr.’s Russian oligarch sugar daddy.
One Ballot After Another
You’ve seen the headlines about the lists, the claims, the THREE times this same executive order about voting by mail has gone to the Supreme Court. But is Trump’s interference with mail-in voting settled—at least with respect to the midterms? Our go-to election law expert, Richard Hasen of UCLA School of Law, joins Dahlia to unpack what just happened and how this postal chaos alters voters’ sense of election security. We’re calling this discussion “information” and not “catastrophizing.”
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