Leaked Supreme Court Memos Reveal the Shadow Docket's Extremely Stupid (and Corrupt) Origins

OA1255 - Has the Southern Poverty Law Center really just been indicted for helping to provide information to the FBI? Did the Trump administration really just tell a federal judge that building a White House ballroom was a matter of “national security”? Did the 5th Circuit really just require Texas to display the 10 Commandments in every public school classroom? We take on these questions and many more before getting to our footnote: Did a Rolls-Royce hating bear really just commit insurance fraud in California? Indictment in U.S. v. Southern Poverty Law Center (filed April 21, 2026) Trump Administration Finally Discloses White House Ballroom Funding Contract in Response to Public Citizen’s FOIA Lawsuit, Public Citizen (April 22, 2026) “The Reckoning of Morris Dees and the Southern Poverty Law Center,” Bob Moser, The New Yorker, (March 21, 2019) Memorandum opinion in National Trust For Historic Preservation in the United States v. National Park Service et al, DC Dist. Ct. (Leon, J., 3/31/26) Nathan et al v. Alamo Independent School District, No. 25-56095 (5th Cir. April 21, 2026) “Operation Bear Claw,” California Department of Insurance Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!  

VR29 - Thomas, Lydia, and Matt go deep on the “Shadow Papers,” the 2016 shadow docket memos recently leaked to The New York Times which reveal the truth about the deliberations preceding the first time of many times to come that the Supreme Court stopped the government from enforcing something before any court had a chance to rule on it. Can anyone still possibly believe that John Roberts is only there to call “balls and strikes” after seeing how enthusiastically he is pitching for the energy lobby in these documents? Why are these glorified work emails so important, and what can we learn about the current state of SCOTUS from them? Watch the episode on YouTube! Chief Justice John Roberts’s confirmation hearing (Sep. 12, 2005) “Read the Supreme Court’s Shadow Papers,” The New York Times (April 18, 2026) West Virginia v. EPA, 597 US ___ (2022) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!

OA1254 - An underreported on case called Cox Communications, Inc. v. Sony Music Entertainment could be a much bigger deal than it seems. Record labels say Cox let repeat infringers run wild on its network and a jury hit them with a massive verdict. Cox says it’s not the internet police and shouldn’t be on the hook for what users do. So how far does that responsibility go? When does “you could have stopped this” turn into legal liability? We break down the DMCA’s “repeat infringer” rules and why this case isn’t just about piracy. The real question is whether companies can be forced to cut people off or redesign their services to prevent misuse and where that logic stops. If failing to stop wrongdoing makes you liable here, what does that mean for platforms, payment processors, or even industries like gun sales where the argument is also “you should have done more”? Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!

OA1253 - It’s spring cleaning time in this week’s news, in which we answer patron questions on everything from DOJ lying to a federal judge about ICE’s policy on arresting immigrants in courthouses to DOJ lying about violating court orders. Also: the Trump administration’s unbelievable gift to some of the worst of the worst J6rs, the D.C. Circuit’s inexplicable termination of Judge Boasberg’s contempt proceedings against the administration for violating his orders, and a major ruling in one of the most important deportation cases in US history. We chase these shots of 200-proof reality out with a chaser: Did the 5th Circuit really just legalize bathtub gin?  Find out in today’s boozy footnote! “DOJ admits ICE courthouse arrests relied on erroneous information,”  Sergio Martinez-Beltran (NPR, 3/26/2026) Email in which ICE revised its policy to exclude arrests at immigration court, filed March 24, 2026 in the Southern District of New York Appeals court again blocks Boasberg contempt probe into Alien Enemies Act deportations (Politico, 4/14/2026) On Petition for Writ of Mandamus, In Re: Trump et al, D.C. Cir (April 14, 2026) Unopposed Motion to Vacate Convictions and To Remand For Dismissal With Prejudice filed April 14, 2026  Order in National Trust for Historic Preservation in the United States v. National Park Service, et al. filed April 11, 2026 in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit Fifth Circuit Strikes Down Federal Law Banning Home Alcohol Distilleries (Reason, 4/11/2026) Decision in McNutt et al. v. United State Department of Justice, Alcohol and Tobacco Trade and Tax Bureau filed April 11, 2026 in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!

VR28 - On this week’s Vapid Response, we survey the fallout from California Congressman Eric Swalwell’s recent exposure as a longtime sexual predator and ensuing swift exit from both the California governor’s race and Congress itself. What does Swalwell’s fall say about how our country’s two political parties handle these kinds of allegations in 2026--and can we once again count on The Federalist to deliver the stupidest possible take on the situation? We then briefly revisit the single worst take on the allegations raised against Brett Kavanaugh during his 2018 confirmation process before paying tribute to the women who organized to bring Swalwell’s many abuses of his power and privilege to light.

OA1252 - Just one month ago, nine people were convicted in a Texas federal court for their participation in a protest outside the Prairieland ICE facility in a first-ever prosecution in which the Department of Justice claimed that support for so-called “Antifa” constituted “material support for terrorism.” What can we learn from the plight of the Prairieland defendants about how the Trump administration is punishing dissent, and where do things go from here? We are joined by Ron, a community member who attended the trial, and Prairieland defense attorney Xavier de Janon of the People’s Law Collective and National Lawyers Guild for their unique perspectives on this important case.  “Support the Prairieland Defendants” (DFW Support Committee website) Superseding indictment with material support for terrorism charges (filed 12/10/2025) ‘“Exclusive: FBI Files Counter Government’s Argument in Texas “Antifa” Trial,” Adam Federman, In These Times (3/26/2026) “Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence (NPSM-7)”, The White House, September 25, 2025 Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!

OA1251 - We begin with a rare Friday appearance from OA democracy correspondent Jenessa Seymour, who stops in to provide some unequivocal good news from this week’s elections.  Then: a temperature check on how mad should we be that the Supreme Court has cleared the way for Steve Bannon’s conviction to be reversed, an appropriately respectful review of former Attorney General Pam Bondi’s career, and a footnote involving an extremely litigious German tourist who made the most of his short time in New York City in the most American way possible. Lawfare’s Contempt Tracker Brief for the United States in U.S. v. Bannon (filed 2/6/2026) Amicus brief in U.S. v. Bannon filed by state of Iowa (12/10/2025) “Trump’s Justice Department Dropped 23,000 Criminal Investigations in Shift to Immigration,” ProPublica (3/31/2026) Ethics complaint against former AG Pam Bondi filed by a coalition of progressive attorneys (June 5, 2025) Manz v. Walmart Supercenter, (3rd Cir., 2/27/2026) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! To support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!  

VR27 - This week on Vapid Response Wednesday we take a look at the liars, losers, frauds, and suckers angling for a federal bench who have worked up, developed,  and sold the “other side” of the Fourteenth Amendment’s simple guarantee of birthright citizenship, which failed so badly in front of the Supreme Court last week. What kinds of people are out there trying to say that “anyone born or naturalized in the United States” doesn’t mean exactly what it says? We review and discuss how a Fox News talkshow host, a deeply unserious law professor, and the lawyer most responsible for the events of January 6th, 2021 all did their part to radically reshape the US Constitution and who will benefit from it going forward. Watch this episode on YouTube! The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, Library of Congress (1868) “The Birthright Con,” Jamelle Bouie, The New York Times (April 1, 2026) (recommended reading!) “If SCOTUS upholds birthright citizenship it will be at its own peril,” Breccan Thies, The Federalist (April 1, 2026) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!  

OA1250 - A fall out of bed during a vacation in Delaware turned into a Supreme Court case, decided this term, that could have big implications for states’ rights to limit tort suits… in federal court. Did Delaware take a good-faith precautionary measure to reduce frivolous medical malpractice lawsuits? Or did they put up an unfair barrier to plaintiffs who deserve restitution? Perhaps reasonable people can disagree on that. But in the rare circumstance you manage to bring that state tort case into a federal courtroom, SCOTUS ruled 9-0 that it’s clear Delaware’s rule is a step too far. (They can still do what they want in their own courts, but not here). How far-reaching will the consequences be? Legal reporting seems split! Come for the (brief, not too gory) medical drama, stay for the review of the Erie Doctrine so you can pass your Federal Civil Procedure class. A nice chill case where the world isn’t burning down and the justices mostly act like normal respectful people. Berk v. Choy, 607 U.S. ___ (2026) Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins, 304 U.S. 64 (1938) Rules Enabling Act of 1934: 28 U.S.C. § 2071-2077 Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Robert Niles-Weed, A Sleeper Supreme Court Case Opens Door to More Frivolous Suits, Bloomberg Law, Mar. 3, 2026. Ronald Mann, Justices Reject State Limits on Malpractice Actions for Cases in Federal Court, SCOTUSblog, Jan. 21, 2026. Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!

... and they really never should have been laughed in to court in the first place. OA1249 - Solicitor General D. John Sauer got plenty of laughs when he brought his best April Fool’s Day game to the Supreme Court this week, and we’re here to break down the  single stupidest case the federal government has ever presented. Matt brings the receipts to show just how badly the Trump administration’s arguments against the plain text of the Constitution and the binding precedent of U.S. v. Wong Kim Ark (1898) went, and why he is willing to bet his house on the fact that even this SCOTUS will have no choice but to find that “all persons born or naturalized in the United States” means exactly what it says that it means.  “Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship,” The White House (1/20/2026) U.S. v. Wong Kim Ark, 169 U.S. 649 (1898)[PDF] Brief for the Petitioners in Trump v. Barbara Brief for Respondents in Trump v. Barbara Trump v. Barbara Supreme Court oral argument transcript (4/1/2026) Amicus brief filed by Prof. Evan Bernick & Prof. Jed Shugerman Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!