That’s right folks!! The Supreme Court is coming after your precious Amazon purchases, as the case of South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. will decide whether adding State taxes to online purchases violates the Dormant Commerce Clause. Brett and Nazim discuss Federalism and the DCC at length, brag about living in a State that will be unaffected by the whole ordeal, and sing a weird amount. Law starts at (04:17).
This week Brett and Nazim are “peak Brett and Nazim”, as the Brett crows about the Eagles winning the Super Bowl and Nazim discusses how to improve voting districts. In addition to covering the recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision which declared the district maps unconstitutional, the case of Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky is also discussed, which covers whether statutes banning political apparel at voting stations violate the First Amendment. The law technically starts at (06:48), but there’s some turbulence until like the ten minute mark.
This week’s episode welcomes back Nazim by covering recent decisions issued by the Court. It’s a banner week for Clarence Thomas, as in one case he ruins a house party (D.C. v. Wesby), and the other involves he discounts an incredibly racist juror affidavit (Tharpe v Sellers). Law starts at (07:20).
Nazim’s still on vaca, so Brett is joined by special guest Penni, who comes on to share background in Native American law in the United States, cover a specific case concerning tribal immunity (Upper Skagit Indian Tribe v. Lungren), and try to breeze through two water rights cases (Texas v. New Mexico and Colorado & Florida v. Georgia). Law starts at (12:36).
Some of these ballots are lighter, some are heavier, and while this is more in the latter category, I feel that there is at least one, if not more, clear winners. Sometimes we play with the spread on these things by adjusting who wins by requiring a margin, but with this number of choices, it felt like leaving some easy ones was fair. Without further doodoo, the ballot is here.
If this is news to you, please feel free to look over prior ballots and join the fun, but your entries referring to cases that have already been decided will be set aside. More details on the appropriate tab of this website.
With Nazim on vacation, special guest Lindsey (@DCInbox) joins Brett to discuss cases that deal with voter disenfranchisement (Husted v. A. Phillip Randolph Institute) and gerrymandering (Abbott v. Perez). Law starts at (13:20) and Lindsey makes midterm predictions at the end.
This week’s episode is all about mistakes, as lawyers and podcasters. Brett and Nazim center this episode around McCoy v. Louisiana, which asks whether or not an attorney who concedes guilt during a First Degree Murder trial has violated his client’s Constitutional right to an attorney. This episode covers the standard for ineffective assistance of counsel, goes through a few examples, and even covers a short background on Louisiana law, but first and foremost, Brett and Nazim discuss probably the greatest listener comment we’ve received. Law starts at (05:56).
“V” is the letter of the day today, as we are covering VOCABULARY this week on the Citizen’s Guide to the Supreme Court. Brett and Nazim cover three current cases which debate the meanings of statutory text, including Murphy v. Smith (how much is 25%?), Digital Realty Trust v. Somers (what is a whistle blower?), and SAS Institute v. Matal (what is a final written decision?). Law starts at (04:25).
This week’s episode covers the Fourth Amendment, and specifically why police officers should err on the side of getting a a warrant to avoid cases being taken to the Supreme Court. Brett and Nazim cover Collins v. Virgnia and Byrd v. U.S. (starting at 19:20), but not before discussing the Constitutionality of anti-homeless legislation (starting at 5:47) and why the Benjamin Button movie sucks (that’s from the jump, homie).
Wheeeeee. That… was some party. I almost forgot to get this up. If anyone finds my pants, a smoldering elf, or an angry wookie, let me know. And, for the love of Santa, stay away from all of them.
I wish I had some witty banter here, but I used it all up for 2017. There are rules to this thing, and if you don’t know them, you should check them out. So, with that much ado, here’s the poll for this month’s SCOTUS Fantasy League.
