Shows / Advisory Opinions
Advisory Opinions
Advisory Opinions is a legal podcast by The Dispatch. Hosts David French and Sarah Isgur meet twice a week to talk about the law, the courts, their collision with politics, and why it all matters.
Episodes
- Advisory Opinions
Inconsistent and Repugnant
On today’s episode, David and Sarah break down the most interesting Supreme Court argument of this term and what it means for the future of double jeopardy…
- Advisory Opinions
Story Time for Fed Court Nerds
Sarah and David return from their Thanksgiving feasts to serve up a very nerdy episode on fed court law. Enjoy: -David giving a lowdown of the Voting Rights…
- Advisory Opinions
Hamburger Mary's Risqué Drag Show
Sarah and David have a big ol' pod today, wherein they discuss a First Amendment case involving risqué drag shows at a burger joint, hunter harassment laws…
- Advisory Opinions
The New Supreme Court Ethics Code Is...Okay?
Sarah and David respond to comments on Bari Weiss’ Federalist Society speech. The two then turn to the latest Supreme Court news, including: -A new ethics code…
- Advisory Opinions
Bari Weiss: Fight, Fight Fight
Bari Weiss recently gave the Barbara K. Olson Memorial lecture at the Federalist Society, in which she detailed the horrific aftermath of Hamas’ October 7…
- Advisory Opinions
Solicitor General 9000
Two gun cases that aren’t gun cases take over today’s episode as Sarah and David analyze two cert grants from the Supreme Court. Sarah also breaks down new…
- Advisory Opinions
Getting Blocked on Social Media
The Supreme Court deliberates whether state actors should be allowed to block private users on social media and Sarah and David have thoughts. Plus: -The first…
- Advisory Opinions
Due Processes vs. Defamation
The Connecticut Supreme Court weighed in on a suit stemming from a sexual assault hearing at Yale University that raised tensions between due process…
- Advisory Opinions
Mailbag: Majority Rule and Philosophy Majors
Sarah and David take a break from the news to answer listeners' questions: How should fans approach the hosts in public? Does intent matter in constitutional…
- Advisory Opinions
Biden's Coercive Social Media Tactics
Sidney Powell may be the best lawyer ever, SCOTUS might finally have a tech term, and David’s humble brag didn’t get past anyone. Sarah and David fly through a…
- Advisory Opinions
High Feminism and Lessons from Battlestar Galactica
Live from the University of Virginia and before a strangely happy group of law students, Sarah and David cover a range of topics from a convicted rapper who…
- Advisory Opinions
Not the Trump Apologist Podcast
What do the 6th, 9th, and 11th circuit all have in common? Well, they're all part of this episode's circuit palooza! But don't fret, there's also: -One city…
- Advisory Opinions
Cancel Culture and the Anti-Semitism Rot in Universities
Sarah and David return to their regularly scheduled Supreme Court programming, specifically to a racial gerrymandering case out of South Carolina (Sarah has…
- Advisory Opinions
Law of War
Israel declares war on Hamas after the terrorist organization murders hundreds of civilians. But now, with Israel already carrying out attacks in Gaza, things…
- Advisory Opinions
Lisa, Sarah, and Sarah (and David)
Are you ready for this? Partners at Williams and Connolly Lisa Blatt and Sarah Harris share what it was like to argue before Justice Antonin Scalia, the pros…
- Advisory Opinions
Prof. Will Baude on Section 3, Insurrection, and Trump
Prof. William Baude joins Sarah and David to explain why he thinks Trump's actions in 2020 might be constitutionally disqualified from running for president…
- Advisory Opinions
Guess Who's Back? (It's Sarah, Sarah's Back)
Sarah's back from her first maternity leave ever to for a live recording at Georgetown University Law School. Together with host emeritus David French, they…
- Advisory Opinions
The Grievances Podcast
The David and David show closes out with a First Amendment send-off. They discuss: -A fifth circuit case involving racist accusations and the well-known…
- Advisory Opinions
The Trouble with 'Text, History, and Tradition'
Hello, AO listeners! This episode is a little bit different. Your regular hosts, Sarah and David, are unavailable—Sarah on parental leave, David on the road—so…
- Advisory Opinions
Can Trump Be Gagged?
Prompted by Hunter Biden's indictment, David and David go through a slew of second amendment cases to try and figure out which kind of gun control is…
- Advisory Opinions
A Different Kind of Impeachment
The David and David show looks at Speaker McCarthy's call to open an impeachment inquiry against President Biden. They also break down a big win for the…
- Advisory Opinions
Did the Biden Admin Violate the First Amendment?
It's a grab bag show for David & David: Mark Meadows takes the L in Fulton County, the Fifth Circuit issues an injunction against the Biden administration, and…
- Advisory Opinions
Courtroom Cams and Elon's Crusade
Exciting news from host-in-absentia Sarah Isgur. Partisan gerrymandering. Cameras in courts. David French and guest-host David Lat have so much to cover in so…
- Advisory Opinions
Extraordinary Wits
After David Lat is publicly inducted into the AO family by undergoing a fan-based correction, he and David French run through an eclectic mic of legal topics…
- Advisory Opinions
Throwing Trump Under the Bus?
The DnD show begins as David Lat returns to co-guest host in Sarah's absence. David and David discuss a strange First Amendment case out of the Fifth Circuit…
- Advisory Opinions
Consistent Standing Doctrines
Will there be a legal and cultural consensus on transgender affirming healthcare? Why don’t female deputies get a full weekend in Dallas County? And what will…
- Advisory Opinions
Coup de Target
Can Donald Trump be disqualified from holding public office? Sarah and David host a friendly debate with Michael McConnell, a former circuit judge and current…
- Advisory Opinions
Frederick Douglass: The Original Originalist
Professor Bradley Rebeiro joins Sarah and David to examine Frederick Douglass and the political theories that influenced his thinking. But, before the…
- Advisory Opinions
Indictment Watch: Georgia on My Mind
A grand jury out of Fulton County, Georgia has brought RICO charges against Donald Trump and 18 co-defendants. Sarah and David explain the 98-page indictment…
- Advisory Opinions
Unsatisfying Obscenity (Doctrines)
First Amendment attorney Ari Cohn joins Advisory Opinions to present the complexity of age restriction policies. But first, Sarah and David update listeners on…
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Butterfly Knives and Felon Voting Rights
David and a particularly congested Sarah plan to forward this especially packed AO straight to the Supreme Court. Does the Eighth Amendment enshrine a felon's…
- Advisory Opinions
A Digital Fourth Amendment
UC Berkeley law professor Orin Kerr joins David and Sarah to explain how Fourth Amendment jurisprudence applies to a digital age. Do you have an expectation of…
- Advisory Opinions
Indictment Watch: A Difficult Case Against Trump
Special counsel Jack Smith brings another round of charges against Donald Trump, this time concerning the former president's attempts to subvert the results of…
- Advisory Opinions
The Alito Burn Book
Justice Samuel "Spicy" Alito returns to the pages of The Wall St. Journal with a flaming-hot interview and Sarah and David are here to unpack it. (And we all…
- Advisory Opinions
Indictment Watch: Trump's New Charges, Hunter Biden's Plea
Sarah Isgur and David French answer questions around the legal troubles of Donald Trump and Hunter Biden, including: -Drained swimming pools and deleted…
- Advisory Opinions
Awful Qualified Immunity Cases
Three qualified immunity cases are thoroughly analyzed in a particularly depressing AO episode, but first David and Sarah talk through an injunction on asylum…
- Advisory Opinions
Did Alabama Defy the Supreme Court?
It is NOT the doldrums of this podcast. Sarah and David have prepared a sufficiently full pod starting with Trump's looming federal indictment. Also…
- Advisory Opinions
Two Bronze Doors
Sarah and David reach peak AO and fulfill their promise of delivering something stratospherically nerdy. Judge Charles Eskridge for the Southern District of…
- Advisory Opinions
Justice, Justice Thou Shalt Pursue
Amanda Tyler, the Shannon C. Turner Professor of Law at Berkeley, joins Sarah and David for post-SCOTUS term talk. They finally give Mallory v. Norfolk…
- Advisory Opinions
AO on K Street
Kannon Shanmugam rejoins Sarah and David for another SCOTUS opinion wrap-up and barbecue showdown for this live taping in front of a lucky audience of summer…
- Advisory Opinions
Billable Hours by the Millions
Sarah and David catch-up with non-SCOTUS cases starting with... -A multi-million dollar lawsuit involving Musk's Twitter deal -A bold move by a judge blocking…
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Legal Eagles Travel Log: A Gettysburg Anniversary Special
In this special episode of Advisory Opinions, Sarah follows Judge Alan Norris, a Sixth Circuit judge, on a trip to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The Legal Eagles…
- Advisory Opinions
SCOTUS on Student Loan Forgiveness: Nope
For Advisory Opinions' purposes, the Supreme Court term is over. Sarah and David return to share their end-of-term thoughts and feelings, David's crankiness…
- Advisory Opinions
Harvard Loses Affirmative Action Case
In a contentious decision, the Supreme Court shuts down affirmative action in universities... or does it? How impactful, really, is the decision in Students…
- Advisory Opinions
Nuking the Independent Legislature Doctrine
As the term rushes to an end, the Supreme Court wades eagerly into a mooted case in order to close the door on the "independent legislature doctrine." But does…
- Advisory Opinions
Alito's Preemptive Strike (Against ProPublica)
Sarah Isgur and Guest-host David French return from the Advisory Opinions live event for some Supreme Court bingo. Plus: -Opinion lightning round -Justice…
- Advisory Opinions
Did Hunter Biden Get A Sweetheart Deal...?
Did Hunter Biden receive a sweetheart deal from the DOJ? How are other people treated under similar circumstances? And what’s with DOJ’s timing? In this live…
- Advisory Opinions
The People's Justice
Judge Amul Thapar joins Sarah to discuss his book: The People’s Justice: Clarence Thomas and the Stories That Define Him. While today's SCOTUS decisions won't…
- Advisory Opinions
Indictment Watch: The Cannon Conundrum
Should Judge Cannon recuse herself from the Trump case? What's the legal standard on willful retention of documents? Will the Finding Nemo Seagull defense…
- Advisory Opinions
Voting Rights in Alabama
Did Alabama violate the Voting Rights Act? How do you pronounce Gingles? And what are the tea leaf predictions for the Harvard discrimination case? Join Sarah…
- Advisory Opinions
Indictment Watch: Trump Charged in Classified Docs Probe
In an emergency pod, Sarah Isgur and David French review the indictment against Donald Trump which was unsealed on Friday: what is and isn't in the indictment…
- Advisory Opinions
God, Guns, and Trump
After a brief trademark SCOTUS update, Guest Host David French and Perennial Guest David Lat break down the trickiness of vouchers for religious charter…
- Advisory Opinions
Lower Your Expectations
SCOTUS refuses to serve up the good stuff with the latest round of opinions released. Sarah and David discuss the chipping away of labor rights and subjective…
- Advisory Opinions
Excessive Fines and Strange Bedfellows
With a 9-0 frown, the Supreme Court rejects the EPA's expansive definition of "wetlands." David and Sarah also discuss the growing Jackson-Gorsuch alliance…
- Advisory Opinions
ISIS and Algorithms
Sarah and David react as SCOTUS weighs in on social media regulations. Sigh. Also: -Justice Jackson cutting to the chase -Patent Act and dad jokes -Reader…
- Advisory Opinions
Warhol Brings Down the House
-Ukraine, through the eyes of Mr. French -The Andy Warhol copyright skirmish -The Progressive Justice League turns on itself -Title 42 and civil liberties: The…
- Advisory Opinions
Waiting for the SCOTUS Hit Parade
David Lat stands in for Host Emeritus once more to help Sarah catch up on the latest Supreme Court decisions. Too, they take a detour on penmanship. -Why the…
- Advisory Opinions
SCOTUS to Congress: Do Your Job
While host emeritus is off for a week on a mysterious mission, David Lat of Original Jurisdiction rejoins Sarah to sift through the latest Supreme Court…
- Advisory Opinions
Trump Found Liable for Sexual Abuse, Defamation
Sarah returns from her tick-filled trip from Gettysburg to discuss the E. Jean Carroll civil lawsuit against Donald Trump. Also: -Santos detained -Sci-fi hot…
- Advisory Opinions
Perceptions of Violence
Damon Preston, public advocate for the commonwealth of Kentucky, joins Guest-Host David French to break down the Jordan Neely incident. While some New Yorkers…