Over the past year, the Supreme Court has taken a far more active role in reviewing cases reflecting fringe arguments supported by federal district court judges and appellate circuits. The Western and Northern Districts of Texas have become the destination of choice for "judge-shopping" to receive the benefits of far-right conservative judicial ide…

In this episode, we unpack the chaos of the Trump years. Breaking news took on new meaning during Donald Trump’s term in the White House—one that was quite different from prior presidential administrations. A ban on Muslims from entering the United States, known as the “Muslim Ban” quickly went into effect after his inauguration. The world saw the …

Nisha Anand, the Chief Executive Officer of Dream.org, joins SideBar to discuss how she builds bridges across political divides to find real solutions. Nisha employs the “radical act of finding common ground” with unlikely allies while still staying true to her progressive values. She provides a hopeful message that collaboration can achieve change…

Senior CNN Legal Analyst Elie Honig challenges whether the rule of law is under attack when powerful people square off against judges and juries. As author of Untouchable: How Powerful People Get Away with It and a former federal and state prosecutor, he served on air as a CNN Senior Legal Analyst throughout the first criminal trial and conviction …

Kathy Spillar, Executive Director of Feminist Majority Foundation and Executive Editor of MS Magazine joins SideBar to discuss why ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is an essential legal tool to guarantee women's rights. Ratification of the ERA would constitutionally prohibit sex discrimination, recognize systemic inequities across d…

In this episode, we continue our series: The Trump Indictments. On May 30, 2024, Donald Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts by a New York jury. In this episode we unpack the criminal charges that Donald Trump engaged in illegal business, electoral, and campaign activities. This week, we’re rejoined by Moira Donegan to discuss why the New York t…

Madiba K. Dennie is an attorney, columnist, author, and professor whose work focuses on fostering an equitable multiracial democracy. Dennie is the author of The Originalism Trap: How Extremists Stole the Constitution and How We the People Can Take It Back. She currently serves as Deputy Editor and Senior Contributor at the critical legal commentar…

Since the Dobbs Supreme Court case was decided, we have gained a heightened awareness of the criminal laws surrounding pregnancies, including the decision to terminate one. But the criminalization of abortion isn’t a new post-Dobbs phenomenon. Women, especially women of color, have frequently faced punitive state laws regulating reproductive health…

In this episode, taped in front of a live audience at Georgetown Law in Washington, D.C., a panel of health and legal experts unpack what's happening around the world—from Gaza, to Afghanistan and beyond. How can governments and NGOs best act to preserve health, enforce legal norms, and protect humanity in times of conflict, and what can we learn f…

Law Professor Mary Sarah Bilder discusses the amazing story of Eliza Harriot, a rare female public lecturer who delivered a University of Pennsylvania program attended by George Washington as he met in Philadelphia with delegates to draft the US Constitution. Harriot’s performance likely inspired the gender-neutral language of the Constitution and …

In this episode, we're joined by the indomitable Lizz Winstead with a live studio in Washington, D.C. She bares all as we talk about the new documentary featuring her and Abortion Access Front (AAF), No One Asked You. From her childhood to her own abortion story, she tells it all, including what led her to found AAF. In a time when the news is incr…

Law Professors Joy Milligan and Bertrall Ross discuss how we should interpret a Constitution that was not written for or drafted by “We the People”. The original constitution excluded women and racial minorities. The drafters and the commentators of the period were exclusively white men. Many of the subsequent amendments were adopted under "undemoc…

The fight to enshrine gender equality in the U.S. Constitution is more urgent than ever. The Equal Rights Amendment could prove pivotal in securing not just the promise of equal protections in the eyes of the law, but by providing crucial protections when it comes to reproductive rights in the wake of Roe’s overturn. Nobody knows this better than S…

Since the mid to late 1980s, an increasingly conservative federal bench has made it more difficult to defend Indian rights under existing treaties and federal law. John Echohawk is an attorney and Executive Director of the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) defending Native American tribes, organizations, and individuals. He joins SideBar to discus…

This week, we’re continuing our series, “The Trump Indictments,” which unpacks the litigation and criminal charges levied at former president Donald Trump. In this episode, Dr. Goodwin brings us up to speed on the Supreme Court’s decision to reinstate the former President on the Colorado ballot. Professor Anthony Michael Kreis also returns to discu…

The federal constitution neither explicitly nor implicitly includes the right to vote. Instead, the framers allowed the States to determine the “Time, Places, and Manner of holding Elections.” Rick Hasen, author of A Real Right to Vote: How a Constitutional Amendment Can Safeguard American Democracy, believes that needs to change. He asserts that a…

This week, we’re continuing our series unpacking the litigation and criminal charges levied at former president Donald Trump: The Trump Indictments. In this episode, Dr. Goodwin is joined by Professor Anthony Michael Kreis as they discuss the status of the Georgia criminal prosecution against Trump and the allegations facing Fulton County DA Fani W…

Federal judges have lifetime tenure with little to no oversight. Despite employing thousands of new law school graduates as law clerks, they aren’t subject to anti-discrimination or other workplace laws. How is it possible that federal courts do not have to follow the same federal labor laws they enforce? In this episode, Aliza Shatzman, founder of…

Access to an ethically based justice system not only protects free and fair elections, but also impacts the rights that affect our everyday lives. In this episode of SideBar, Professor and Author Renee Knake Jefferson calls for lawyers and judges, including the US Supreme Court, to further commit to ethical access to justice.…

In this special episode, Dr. Goodwin is on the road, broadcasting from Amsterdam, the Netherlands. She's joined by Dutch physician and reproductive rights activist and pioneer, Dr. Rebecca Gomperts, founder of Women on Waves—an organization that took to the seas to provide women abortions and reproductive healthcare. They unpack victories and the h…

Appellate courts decide what our laws mean and how they affect all aspects of our personal lives: our ability to vote, how we are policed, our religious freedom, the quality of our education, our workplaces, healthcare, immigration protections, and much more. Yet people of color remain greatly underrepresented as both appellate attorneys and judges…

Report after report has shown that sexual harassment and assault are pervasive throughout the U.S. armed forces: at least 15.7 percent of military personnel and veterans reported military sexual trauma, a number that is likely smaller than the actual total due to shame and fear around reporting. What’s more, perpetrators are rarely if ever held acc…

SideBar cohosts and law deans Jackie Gardina and Mitch Winick look back over the 29 episodes and 25 guests featured in SideBar's incredibly successful first season. If you have been a listener, this episode will highlight key moments from our discussions with expert guests, authors, lawyers, and judges on critical issues facing democracy, the legal…

David Pepper, author of Saving Democracy: A User’s Manual for Every American, returns to SideBar to sound the alarm that democracy remains under attack. Although there were shocking lowlights in 2023, David reminds us that there are also signs of hope. Our final SideBar episode of Season One is a reminder that we all have a critical role to play in…

In this episode, we continue our Collateral Damage series—where we’re thinking about women during wartime, and the unique price they pay. As various wars and conflicts continue to mount around the world, from Ukraine to Gaza, to Sudan and beyond, we’re wondering: where are the women at the negotiating table? The number of women and girls living in …

Disinformation and deepfakes, accelerated by AI, pose an existential threat to our democracy and elections, and as a country, we are simply not ready says The California Institute for Technology and Democracy (CITED). Drew Liebert and Jonathan Mehta Stein believe that what is needed is an impartial source for policymakers, the press, and the public…

This episode marks the first in a new On the Issues series: “Collateral Damage.” In these episodes, we probe where news typically falls off, and its neglect of the impact of war on women. The crises of sexual violence they face, which is a deliberate tactic in war. We examine maternal and reproductive health, the role of women in peacekeeping, and …

Before killing George Floyd, Officer Devin Chauvin had at least 18 misconduct complaints lodged against him. Despite this history, Chauvin was elevated to training new officers. How could this happen? UCLA Law Professor Joanna Schwartz, author of Shielded: How the Police Became Untouchable, explains how courts have constructed multiple legal barrie…

The COVID pandemic exposed weaknesses in our public health system and exposed the lack of trust in science and government. The change in the Supreme Court’s interpretation of public health law has been equally startling . . . overturning 100+ years of public protection by granting religious ideology priority over science. Northeastern University La…

People are mobilizing for labor rights—with major strikes taking place across industries from entertainment to healthcare and more. In this episode, we’re talking about why it’s important to fight for women workers—looking at the past, examining the present, and putting a focus on the future. We examine what's at stake, including childcare, equal p…

Professor Jeff Kosseff, author of "Liar in a Crowded Theater: Freedom of Speech in a World of Misinformation" examines and defends constitutional protection for false speech. "It's the listener and the reader who gets to choose, not the Government!" says Jeff. His warning is that "Once we give away our freedom of speech, we are unlikely to get it b…

On this week’s episode, we’re continuing our series unpacking the litigation and criminal charges that have been levied at former president Donald Trump: The Trump Indictments. But these indictments don’t just include former president Donald Trump—they also include co-conspirators. Who are they—and what do their cases mean for the case against Trum…

Nationally recognized immigration law expert, Professor Cesar García Hernández of The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law talks about the intersection of criminal and immigration law, including the rights of migrants in the criminal justice system, immigration imprisonment, and race-based immigration policing.…

Professor and Dean Emerita Lisa Kloppenberg, author of The Best Beloved Thing is Justice: The Life of Dorothy Wright Nelson, discusses her mentor, colleague, and friend. Judge Nelson was a true trailblazer for women in the legal profession. She was one of only two women in her class at the UCLA School of Law and one of the first 14 female tenure-tr…

Fifty years ago, hip-hop emerged from a party in the rec room of a Bronx building—and a new sound was born--one with roots in African music, but with its own vibe and messaging. Since its first iterations, women have played significant roles in the creation and evolution of hip-hop: as rappers, DJs, producers, breakdancers, graffiti artists, schola…

Supreme Court Correspondent Nina Totenberg discusses her fifty-year career as a reporter covering some of the most important Supreme Court decisions of our time. As a front-row witness to history, with unique access to Supreme Court Justices and Washington D.C. policymakers, Nina joins SideBar cohosts Jackie Gardina and Mitch Winick to discuss the …

On this week’s episode, we’re continuing our series unpacking the litigation and criminal charges that have been levied at former president Donald Trump: The Trump Indictments. Earlier this month, Trump was indicted once again—this time, on 13 charges related to his role in interfering with the 2020 election results in Georgia. The case marks the f…

Professor Stephen Vladeck author of the New York Times bestselling book, The Shadow Docket: How the Supreme Court Uses Stealth Rulings to Amass Power and Undermine the Republic, discusses how the Supreme Court has dramatically expanded the use of the little-known - and poorly understood - "Shadow Docket" to approve unconstitutional voting processes…

Professor Julie Suk, author of After Misogyny: How the Law Fails Women and What to Do About It, discusses the legal and economic framework in the United States that fails to fairly recognize and value women's work. Unfortunately, the U.S. remains a leader in unequal pay, no pay, inadequate support for childcare, healthcare, and social services, and…

After 200 years of racial and ethnic struggle, including the Civil War, Reconstruction, the Civil Rights Era, and Black Lives Matter, where are we now in the effort to achieve the promise of a multi-racial democracy? Dr. Peniel Joseph helps us to understand this struggle and describes our current political environment in a historical context. He ho…

Damon T. Hewitt, President and Executive Director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law, discusses Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina and the Supreme Court’s direction on affirmative action. Hewitt explains what Brown v. Board of Education got wrong, exposes the logical fallacy behind the idea that…

In this episode, we continue our series: The Trump Indictments, unpacking the civil and criminal charges alleging that the former president Donald Trump engaged in illegal activities. In early June 2023, for the second time in two months, Trump was indicted—this time on 37 felony counts for allegedly mishandling sensitive, classified government mat…

Dr. Thaddeus Johnson, former police officer, Senior Fellow at the Council on Criminal Justice, and Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice and Criminology at Georgia State University, discusses his research and unique insights on empowering citizens to create safer communities. Public safety requires more than police reform, it requires community r…

In this episode, we’re celebrating and recognizing Juneteenth. However, in 2023, Juneteenth marks the continued struggle toward racial justice and constitutional equality. From voter suppression to book bans that target Black, Indigenous, and LGBTQ+ authors—this Juneteenth offers much to think about. In the face of these bans, and as we celebrate J…

Professors Morgan Hazelton and Rachael Hinkle have published a fascinating book on one of the mysteries behind Supreme Court decision-making. "Persuading the Supreme Court: The Significance of Briefs in Judicial Decision-Making" combines research of more than 25,000 party and amicus briefs filed between 1984 and 2015 and interviews with former Supr…

On today’s episode, we’re unpacking something that’s become increasingly—and distressingly—mainstream in the wake of the Trump presidency: political violence. This kind of violence overwhelmingly impacts women, particularly women of color. There was an unprecedented spike of threats of political violence in 2020–according to the Brennan Center, one…

Nicole Clark, lawyer, entrepreneur, and CEO of Trellis, discusses how the award-winning technology start-up she founded is democratizing access to the law by making state trial court records more accessible and bringing transparency to the judicial system. Nicole describes her vision, reveals the challenges for women entrepreneurs to obtain venture…

This week, we’re launching a special new series following the litigation and criminal charges that have been levied at the former president Donald Trump: The Trump Indictments. Last week, a New York jury ruled that columnist E. Jean Carroll was sexually assaulted and defamed by the former president, and awarded her five million dollars in damages. …

The indomitable, outspoken, brilliant, and thoughtful Elie Mystal, author, columnist, and commentator, joins cohosts Jackie Gardina and Mitch Winick to discuss his book Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy's Guide to the Constitution. In this wide-ranging conversation, Elie challenges our thinking about how judges should be selected, the myth of judicia…

Society's systematic patterns of inequality targeting women demonstrate something far more harmful than just discrimination or the patriarchy at work. Instead, the myriad ways in which women's personhood, civil liberties, bodily autonomy, and political participation are suppressed suggests misogyny at work. In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Jul…