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type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"http://schema.org","@type":"Blog","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}}}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"United States Attorney for The District of Columbia Shows What Weaponized Justice Really Looks Like","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/04/united-states-attorney-for-the-district-of-columbia-shows-what-weaponized-justice-really-looks-like"},"headline":"United States Attorney for The District of Columbia Shows What Weaponized Justice Really Looks Like","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/shutterstock_693016663.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-04-04T04:01:31-04:00","dateModified":"2025-04-04T03:12:47-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Austin Sarat","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat","description":"Austin Sarat is the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science at Amherst College.\r\n\r\nProfessor Sarat founded both Amherst College\u2019s Department of Law, Jurisprudence, and Social Thought and the national scholarly association, The Association for the Study of Law, Culture, and the Humanities. He is former President of that Association and has also served as President of the Law and Society Association and of the Consortium of Undergraduate Law and Justice Programs.\r\n\r\nHe is author or editor of more than ninety books including <em>Lethal Injection and the False Promise of Humane Execution<\/em> (Stanford University Press, 2022), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cambridge.org\/core\/books\/death-penalty-on-the-ballot\/75A96223EC39440DB00120B5E851EDEA\">The Death Penalty on the Ballot: American Democracy and the Fate of Capital Punishment<\/a> (Cambridge University Press, 2019), <a href=\"https:\/\/global.oup.com\/academic\/product\/the-lives-of-guns-9780190842925?cc=us&lang=en&\">The Lives of Guns<\/a> (Oxford University Press, 2018), and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sup.org\/books\/title\/?id=23979\">Gruesome Spectacles: Botched Executions and America\u2019s Death Penalty<\/a> (Stanford University Press, 2014).\r\n\r\nHe is editor of the journal <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/home\/lch\">Law, Culture and the Humanities<\/a> and of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com\/products\/books\/series.htm?id=1059-4337\">Studies in Law, Politics, and Society<\/a>\r\n\r\nProfessor Sarat has received numerous prizes and awards including the Harry Kalven Award given by the Law Society Association for \u201cdistinguished research on law and society\u201d; the Reginald Heber Smith Award given biennially to honor the best scholarship on \u201cthe subject of equal access to justice\u201d; the James Boyd White Award, from the Association for the Study of Law, Culture, and the Humanities, given for distinguished scholarly achievement and \u201coutstanding and innovative\u201d contributions to the humanistic study of law; and the Hugo Adam Bedau Award, given to honor significant contributions to death penalty scholarship by the Massachusetts Coalition Against the Death Penalty. \r\n\r\nHis public writing has appeared in such places as <em>The New Republic<\/em>, <em>The Guardian<\/em>, <em>The Boston Globe<\/em>, <em>The Cleveland Plain-Dealer<\/em>, <em>The National Law Journal<\/em>, <em>Slate<\/em>, <em>The Providence Journal<\/em>, <em>The Los Angeles Times<\/em>, <em>The American Prospect<\/em>, <em>Aljazeera America<\/em>, <em>US News<\/em>, <em>CNN<\/em>, <em>Politico<\/em>, <em>The Conversation<\/em>, and <em>The Daily Beast<\/em>. He has been a commentator or guest on <em>HuffPost Live<\/em>, <em>The Morning Briefing on Sirius Radio<\/em>, <em>All Things Considered<\/em>, <em>Morning Edition<\/em>, <em>The Rick Ungar Show<\/em>, <em>Democracy Now<\/em>, <em>ABC World News Tonight<\/em>, <em>All in with Chris Hayes<\/em>, <em>The Point with Ari Melber<\/em>, and <em>The O\u2019Reilly Factor<\/em>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Amherst professor Austin Sarat critiques the nomination of Edward Martin as U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, examining how his conduct exemplifies what critics call the \u201cweaponization\u201d of the Justice Department under President Trump. Professor Sarat argues that Martin has misused his prosecutorial power for political ends\u2014especially by pursuing partisan investigations of President Joe Biden and his family\u2014and urges the Senate to reject his confirmation."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Is House Speaker Mike Johnson’s Proposal to Eliminate Federal Judgeships Constitutional?","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/02/is-house-speaker-mike-johnsons-proposal-to-eliminate-federal-judgeships-constitutional"},"headline":"Is House Speaker Mike Johnson’s Proposal to Eliminate Federal Judgeships Constitutional?","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_2342942251.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-04-02T04:01:06-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-31T14:57:38-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Michael C. Dorf","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/dorf","description":"Michael C. Dorf is the Robert S. Stevens Professor of Law at Cornell University Law School. He has written hundreds of popular essays, dozens of scholarly articles, and six books on constitutional law and related subjects. Professor Dorf blogs at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dorfonlaw.org\/\">Dorf on Law<\/a>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Cornell Law professor Michael C. Dorf examines recent calls by President Donald Trump, Speaker Mike Johnson, and their allies in Congress to remove or sideline federal judges who have blocked Trump administration policies, either through impeachment or by eliminating the courts themselves. Professor Dorf argues that such tactics are constitutionally dubious and dangerously undermine judicial independence, warning that the real threat to the republic comes not from the judges, but from efforts to evade legal checks on presidential power."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/01/gavin-newsoms-death-penalty-dilemma"},"headline":"Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_2411709961.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-04-01T04:01:01-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-31T15:08:45-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Austin Sarat","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat","description":"Austin Sarat is the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science at Amherst College.\r\n\r\nProfessor Sarat founded both Amherst College\u2019s Department of Law, Jurisprudence, and Social Thought and the national scholarly association, The Association for the Study of Law, Culture, and the Humanities. He is former President of that Association and has also served as President of the Law and Society Association and of the Consortium of Undergraduate Law and Justice Programs.\r\n\r\nHe is author or editor of more than ninety books including <em>Lethal Injection and the False Promise of Humane Execution<\/em> (Stanford University Press, 2022), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cambridge.org\/core\/books\/death-penalty-on-the-ballot\/75A96223EC39440DB00120B5E851EDEA\">The Death Penalty on the Ballot: American Democracy and the Fate of Capital Punishment<\/a> (Cambridge University Press, 2019), <a href=\"https:\/\/global.oup.com\/academic\/product\/the-lives-of-guns-9780190842925?cc=us&lang=en&\">The Lives of Guns<\/a> (Oxford University Press, 2018), and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sup.org\/books\/title\/?id=23979\">Gruesome Spectacles: Botched Executions and America\u2019s Death Penalty<\/a> (Stanford University Press, 2014).\r\n\r\nHe is editor of the journal <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/home\/lch\">Law, Culture and the Humanities<\/a> and of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com\/products\/books\/series.htm?id=1059-4337\">Studies in Law, Politics, and Society<\/a>\r\n\r\nProfessor Sarat has received numerous prizes and awards including the Harry Kalven Award given by the Law Society Association for \u201cdistinguished research on law and society\u201d; the Reginald Heber Smith Award given biennially to honor the best scholarship on \u201cthe subject of equal access to justice\u201d; the James Boyd White Award, from the Association for the Study of Law, Culture, and the Humanities, given for distinguished scholarly achievement and \u201coutstanding and innovative\u201d contributions to the humanistic study of law; and the Hugo Adam Bedau Award, given to honor significant contributions to death penalty scholarship by the Massachusetts Coalition Against the Death Penalty. \r\n\r\nHis public writing has appeared in such places as <em>The New Republic<\/em>, <em>The Guardian<\/em>, <em>The Boston Globe<\/em>, <em>The Cleveland Plain-Dealer<\/em>, <em>The National Law Journal<\/em>, <em>Slate<\/em>, <em>The Providence Journal<\/em>, <em>The Los Angeles Times<\/em>, <em>The American Prospect<\/em>, <em>Aljazeera America<\/em>, <em>US News<\/em>, <em>CNN<\/em>, <em>Politico<\/em>, <em>The Conversation<\/em>, and <em>The Daily Beast<\/em>. He has been a commentator or guest on <em>HuffPost Live<\/em>, <em>The Morning Briefing on Sirius Radio<\/em>, <em>All Things Considered<\/em>, <em>Morning Edition<\/em>, <em>The Rick Ungar Show<\/em>, <em>Democracy Now<\/em>, <em>ABC World News Tonight<\/em>, <em>All in with Chris Hayes<\/em>, <em>The Point with Ari Melber<\/em>, and <em>The O\u2019Reilly Factor<\/em>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Amherst professor Austin Sarat examines California Governor Gavin Newsom\u2019s shifting political positions, particularly focusing on the uncertainty surrounding his stance on the death penalty as he eyes a potential 2028 presidential run. Professor Sarat argues that Newsom\u2019s credibility and legacy\u2014especially given his prior vocal opposition to capital punishment\u2014hinge on whether he will act decisively to commute the state's death row sentences before leaving office, a move that could significantly influence the national debate on the death penalty."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Important Developments in the White House and in the Fifth Circuit’s Wetzel Case Make More Likely (and More Important) Supreme Court Resolution of What Federal “Election Day” Means","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/31/important-developments-in-the-white-house-and-in-the-fifth-circuits-wetzel-case-make-more-likely-and-more-important-supreme-court-resolution-of-what-federal-election-day-m"},"headline":"Important Developments in the White House and in the Fifth Circuit’s Wetzel Case Make More Likely…","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/shutterstock_13034893.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-31T04:01:39-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-31T12:16:02-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Vikram David Amar","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/amar","description":"Vikram David Amar is a Distinguished Professor of Law at UC Davis School of Law and a Professor of Law and Former Dean at the University of Illinois College of Law on the Urbana-Champaign campus. Immediately prior to taking the position at Illinois in 2015, Amar served as the Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and a Professor of Law at the UC Davis School of Law. He has also had teaching stints at three other law schools affiliated with the University of California: the UC Berkeley School of Law; the UCLA School of Law; and UC Hastings College of the Law.\r\n\r\nHe received a bachelor's degree in history from UC Berkeley and his JD from Yale, where he served as an articles editor for the Yale Law Journal. Upon graduating from law school in 1988, Dean Amar clerked for Judge William A. Norris of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and then for Justice Harry A. Blackmun of the United States Supreme Court. After that he spent a few years at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, devoting half of his time to federal white-collar criminal defense and the other half to complex civil litigation. It appears that Dean Amar was the first person of South Asian heritage to clerk at the U.S. Supreme Court, and was the first American-born person of Indian descent to serve as a dean of a major American law school.\r\n\r\nDean Amar is one of the most eminent and frequently cited authorities in constitutional law, federal courts, and civil procedure. He has produced several books and over 60 articles in leading law reviews. He is a co-author (along with Akhil Reed Amar) of the upcoming edition of the six-volume <em>Treatise on Constitutional Law<\/em> (West Publishing Co., 6th ed. 2021) pioneered by Ron Rotunda and John Nowak, as well as the hardbound and soft-cover one-volume hornbooks that derive from it. He is also a co-author (along with Jonathan Varat) of <em>Constitutional Law: Cases and Materials<\/em> (Foundation Press, 15th ed. 2017), a co-author on multiple volumes of the Wright & Miller <em>Federal Practice and Procedure<\/em> Treatise (West Publishing Co. 2006), and a co-author (along with John Oakley) of a one-volume work on <em>American Civil Procedure<\/em> (Kluwer, 2008)."},{"@type":"Person","name":"Jason Mazzone","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/mazzone","description":"Jason Mazzone is the Albert E. Jenner, Jr. Professor of Law at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Director of the Illinois Program in Constitutional Theory, History, and Law. \r\n\r\nProfessor Mazzone\u2019s primary field of research and teaching is constitutional law and history. He works principally on issues of constitutional structure and institutional design with a particular focus on relationships between structural arrangements and individual rights. His groundbreaking work on the Constitution of the United States has appeared in dozens of prominent legal journals. He regularly advises, on a <em>pro bono<\/em> basis, litigants in cases before the Supreme Court of the United States and in other courts. A good part of Professor Mazzone\u2019s research involves comparative issues in constitutional law. He has lectured around the world on this topic and he has advised new democracies during their processes of drafting and implementing their own constitutions. Unifying all of this work is a close attention to the role of culture in grounding and shaping formal constitutions, a topic Professor Mazzone first explored in his dissertation at Yale University. Professor Mazzone is currently at work on two books: one a global study of the future of constitutional rights; the other, a study of how the U.S. Constitution serves as both a unifying and dividing force in American society. \r\n\r\nProfessor Mazzone works also in the field of intellectual property law. He is the world\u2019s leading expert on overreaching assertions of intellectual property rights. In a famous article published in the <em>NYU Law Review<\/em> in 2006, Professor Mazzone coined the term, \u201ccopyfraud,\u201d to describe claims of copyright in works that are actually in the public domain and cannot be copyrighted by anyone. That article generated scores of studies by other academic researchers and \u201ccopyfraud\u201d became the tagline for popular criticism of excessive intellectual property claims. Professor Mazzone\u2019s acclaimed book, <em>Copyfraud and Other Abuses of Intellectual Property Law<\/em>, was published in 2011 by Stanford University Press. Professor Mazzone\u2019s work on overreaching intellectual property claims has produced legislative reforms in France and other countries; provided the framework for high-profile lawsuits to limit intellectual property rights to their statutorily-designated scope; inspired symposia and conferences at home and abroad; shaped the work of public interest organizations and legal clinics devoted to protecting the public domain; provided guidance to the work of the U.S. Copyright Office and the U.K. Intellectual Property Office; and served as a framework for rethinking key aspects of our system of intellectual property laws. \r\n\r\nProfessor Mazzone received his undergraduate and law degrees from Harvard University, a master\u2019s degree from Stanford University, and a master\u2019s and doctorate from Yale University. While a student he worked with Laurence H. Tribe on constitutional cases in the Supreme Court and for Robert D. Putnam on the bestselling book <em>Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community<\/em>. He served also as Rapporteur to the Saguaro Seminar on Civic Engagement in America, a workshop group whose members included then-Illinois State Senator Barack Obama. Before entering law teaching, Professor Mazzone clerked for Judge Robert D. Sack of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and for Judge John G. Koeltl of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and he practiced intellectual property law in New York City. \r\n\r\nProfessor Mazzone is a member of the American Law Institute and a fellow of the European Law Institute. He is Chair of the Illinois-Bologna Conference on Comparative Constitutional History, a member of the Advisory Board of the Italian Law Journal, and a member of the International Association of Constitutional Law Research Group on Constitutionalism in Illiberal Democracies. He has also served on the Board of Trustees of the Copyright Society of the USA. His scholarship has been cited by many courts, including the Supreme Court of the United States. He is a regular media commentator and he has written about legal issues for <em>The New York Times<\/em> and other national newspapers. Professor Mazzone blogs at Balkinization."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"UC Davis Law professor Vikram David Amar and Illinois Law professor Jason Mazzone address the Fifth Circuit\u2019s refusal to rehear a case challenging a Mississippi law allowing mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted if received within five business days. Professors Amar and Mazzone explore the broader implications of that decision\u2014especially in light of a recent Executive Order by President Donald Trump that adopts a strict interpretation of federal \u201cElection Day\u201d laws. The authors argue the Fifth Circuit\u2019s reasoning is flawed, that longstanding state practices allowing some flexibility in ballot receipt are legally and constitutionally sound, and that both the court\u2019s ruling and the Executive Order reflect an overly rigid and potentially partisan approach that should ultimately be reviewed and corrected by the U.S. Supreme Court."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part Two of Two","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/28/social-security-is-essential-efficient-gasp-and-definitely-not-a-ponzi-scheme-2"},"headline":"Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part Two of Two","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/ChatGPT-Image-Mar-27-2025-10_37_21-PM.png?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-28T04:01:18-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-28T14:27:46-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Neil H. Buchanan","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/buchanan","description":"Neil H. Buchanan, an economist and legal scholar, is a visiting professor at the University of Toronto Law school. He is the James J. Freeland Eminent Scholar Chair in Taxation Emeritus at the University of Florida's Levin College of Law. Professor Buchanan blogs at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dorfonlaw.org\/\">Dorf on Law<\/a>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"In this second of a two-part series of columns discussing Donald Trump and Republicans\u2019 efforts to dismantle Social Security, University of Toronto visiting law professor and economist Neil H. Buchanan argues that despite public reassurances, Republican initiatives\u2014especially those supported by figures like Elon Musk\u2014are methodically weakening Social Security, threatening a vital, efficient, and historically successful program that prevents elder poverty and supports millions of Americans. Professor Buchanan contends that these efforts are based on false narratives, including misleading comparisons to Ponzi schemes and deceptive efficiency claims, all aimed at undermining public confidence in the system\u2014particularly among younger generations\u2014in order to justify harmful privatization schemes that would ultimately benefit Wall Street at the expense of working Americans."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part One of Two","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/27/social-security-is-essential-efficient-gasp-and-definitely-not-a-ponzi-scheme"},"headline":"Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part One of Two","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/shutterstock_306158105.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-27T14:24:25-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-28T14:28:54-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Neil H. Buchanan","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/buchanan","description":"Neil H. Buchanan, an economist and legal scholar, is a visiting professor at the University of Toronto Law school. He is the James J. Freeland Eminent Scholar Chair in Taxation Emeritus at the University of Florida's Levin College of Law. Professor Buchanan blogs at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dorfonlaw.org\/\">Dorf on Law<\/a>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"University of Toronto visiting law professor and economist Neil H. Buchanan addresses the Trump administration\u2019s attacks on Social Security, particularly through cutting the budget to force the system to deteriorate, and he debunks the false claim\u2014recently amplified by Elon Musk\u2014that Social Security is a Ponzi scheme. Professor Buchanan argues that Social Security is a sustainable, pay-as-you-go system that functions similarly to private banking and retirement savings, and that calling it a Ponzi scheme reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of both financial systems and economic sustainability."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Trump’s Justice Department Plays Dirty","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/19/trumps-justice-department-plays-dirty"},"headline":"Trump’s Justice Department Plays Dirty","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/shutterstock_598168121.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-19T04:01:40-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-18T23:47:03-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Michael C. Dorf","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/dorf","description":"Michael C. Dorf is the Robert S. Stevens Professor of Law at Cornell University Law School. He has written hundreds of popular essays, dozens of scholarly articles, and six books on constitutional law and related subjects. Professor Dorf blogs at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dorfonlaw.org\/\">Dorf on Law<\/a>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Cornell Law professor Michael C. Dorf examines the Trump administration\u2019s apparent disregard for judicial authority, focusing on its defiance of a court order prohibiting the use of the Alien Enemies Act for deportations and its broader pattern of legal manipulation. Professor Dorf argues that even if technical compliance with court rulings is maintained, the administration\u2019s deceptive tactics and overt hostility toward judicial oversight severely undermine the rule of law and pose a grave threat to American constitutional democracy."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Schumer Was (Unfortunately) Right, But Either Way, the Infighting Must Stop","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/19/schumer-was-unfortunately-right-but-either-way-the-infighting-must-stop"},"headline":"Schumer Was (Unfortunately) Right, But Either Way, the Infighting Must Stop","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/shutterstock_305852246.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-19T04:00:32-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-18T23:56:08-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Neil H. Buchanan","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/buchanan","description":"Neil H. Buchanan, an economist and legal scholar, is a visiting professor at the University of Toronto Law school. He is the James J. Freeland Eminent Scholar Chair in Taxation Emeritus at the University of Florida's Levin College of Law. Professor Buchanan blogs at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dorfonlaw.org\/\">Dorf on Law<\/a>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"University of Toronto visiting law professor and economist Neil H. Buchanan discusses Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer\u2019s decision to avert a government shutdown by supporting a controversial continuing resolution (CR), despite backlash from Democrats and anti-Trump groups who saw it as a capitulation. Professor Buchanan argues that while Schumer is not typically a progressive hero, he made the right decision to prevent lasting harm, as a shutdown would have handed excessive power to Trump and Musk. Professor Buchanan calls upon Democrats to stop infighting so that they can effectively resist the rise of authoritarianism."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Guantanamo and the Performative President","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/18/guantanamo-and-the-performative-president"},"headline":"Guantanamo and the Performative President","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/shutterstock_330108026.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-18T04:01:42-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-18T00:54:23-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Joseph Margulies","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/margulies","description":"Mr. Margulies is a Professor of Government at Cornell University. He was Counsel of Record in <em>Rasul v. Bush<\/em> (2004), involving detentions at the Guant\u00e1namo Bay Naval Station, and in <em>Geren v. Omar<\/em> & <em>Munaf v. Geren<\/em> (2008), involving detentions at Camp Cropper in Iraq. Presently he is counsel for Abu Zubaydah, whose interrogation in 2002 prompted the Bush Administration to draft the \u201ctorture memos.\u201d In June 2005, at the invitation of Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter, Margulies testified at the first Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on detainee issues.\r\n\r\nMargulies writes and lectures widely on civil liberties in the wake of September 11 and his commentaries have appeared in numerous publications, including the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune, the National Law Journal, the Miami Herald, the Christian Science Monitor, the Virginia Quarterly Review, and the Legal Times. He is also the author of the widely acclaimed book, Guant\u00e1namo and the Abuse of Presidential Power (Simon and Schuster 2006). Among other accolades, Guant\u00e1namo was named one of the best books of 2006 by The Economist magazine. It received the prestigious Silver Gavel Award of 2007, given annually by the American Bar Association to the book that best promotes \u201cthe American public\u2019s understanding of the law and the legal system.\u201d It also won the Scribes Book Award of 2007, given annually by the American Society of Legal Writers to honor \u201cthe best work of legal scholarship published during the previous year.\u201d He is also the author of <em>What Changed When Everything Changed: 9\/11 and the Making of National Identity<\/em> (Yale Univ. Press 2013) and has won numerous awards for his work since 9\/11."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Cornell professor Joseph Margulies discusses President Donald Trump\u2019s attempt to use Guantanamo Bay as a detention facility for migrants, highlighting the legal and logistical obstacles that make such plan infeasible. Professor Margulies argues that Trump\u2019s real goal has never been about policy implementation but rather about shaping public perception\u2014using Guantanamo as a symbol to dehumanize immigrants and redefine the national identity around exclusion."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"The Trump Administration Defies a Court Order in the Venezuelan Gang Case and Pushes America Into Unchartered Territory","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/17/the-trump-administration-defies-a-court-order-in-the-venezuelan-gang-case-and-pushes-america-into-unchartered-territory"},"headline":"The Trump Administration Defies a Court Order in the Venezuelan Gang Case and Pushes America Into…","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/shutterstock_782972068.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-17T04:01:18-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-17T02:52:38-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Austin Sarat","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat","description":"Austin Sarat is the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science at Amherst College.\r\n\r\nProfessor Sarat founded both Amherst College\u2019s Department of Law, Jurisprudence, and Social Thought and the national scholarly association, The Association for the Study of Law, Culture, and the Humanities. He is former President of that Association and has also served as President of the Law and Society Association and of the Consortium of Undergraduate Law and Justice Programs.\r\n\r\nHe is author or editor of more than ninety books including <em>Lethal Injection and the False Promise of Humane Execution<\/em> (Stanford University Press, 2022), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cambridge.org\/core\/books\/death-penalty-on-the-ballot\/75A96223EC39440DB00120B5E851EDEA\">The Death Penalty on the Ballot: American Democracy and the Fate of Capital Punishment<\/a> (Cambridge University Press, 2019), <a href=\"https:\/\/global.oup.com\/academic\/product\/the-lives-of-guns-9780190842925?cc=us&lang=en&\">The Lives of Guns<\/a> (Oxford University Press, 2018), and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sup.org\/books\/title\/?id=23979\">Gruesome Spectacles: Botched Executions and America\u2019s Death Penalty<\/a> (Stanford University Press, 2014).\r\n\r\nHe is editor of the journal <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/home\/lch\">Law, Culture and the Humanities<\/a> and of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com\/products\/books\/series.htm?id=1059-4337\">Studies in Law, Politics, and Society<\/a>\r\n\r\nProfessor Sarat has received numerous prizes and awards including the Harry Kalven Award given by the Law Society Association for \u201cdistinguished research on law and society\u201d; the Reginald Heber Smith Award given biennially to honor the best scholarship on \u201cthe subject of equal access to justice\u201d; the James Boyd White Award, from the Association for the Study of Law, Culture, and the Humanities, given for distinguished scholarly achievement and \u201coutstanding and innovative\u201d contributions to the humanistic study of law; and the Hugo Adam Bedau Award, given to honor significant contributions to death penalty scholarship by the Massachusetts Coalition Against the Death Penalty. \r\n\r\nHis public writing has appeared in such places as <em>The New Republic<\/em>, <em>The Guardian<\/em>, <em>The Boston Globe<\/em>, <em>The Cleveland Plain-Dealer<\/em>, <em>The National Law Journal<\/em>, <em>Slate<\/em>, <em>The Providence Journal<\/em>, <em>The Los Angeles Times<\/em>, <em>The American Prospect<\/em>, <em>Aljazeera America<\/em>, <em>US News<\/em>, <em>CNN<\/em>, <em>Politico<\/em>, <em>The Conversation<\/em>, and <em>The Daily Beast<\/em>. He has been a commentator or guest on <em>HuffPost Live<\/em>, <em>The Morning Briefing on Sirius Radio<\/em>, <em>All Things Considered<\/em>, <em>Morning Edition<\/em>, <em>The Rick Ungar Show<\/em>, <em>Democracy Now<\/em>, <em>ABC World News Tonight<\/em>, <em>All in with Chris Hayes<\/em>, <em>The Point with Ari Melber<\/em>, and <em>The O\u2019Reilly Factor<\/em>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Amherst professor Austin Sarat discusses the Trump administration\u2019s late-night deportation of alleged Venezuelan gang members despite a federal judge\u2019s order to halt the process and examines the implications for constitutional law and executive power. Professor Sarat argues that by defying the court order, the administration dangerously undermined the rule of law, demonstrating its willingness to consolidate power and disregard constitutional checks, marking a troubling crisis for American democracy."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Do Ask, Do Exit or Mask: Transgender Service Members, the DOD Guidance on the Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness Executive Order, and Why It Should Matter to Us All","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/13/do-ask-do-exit-or-mask"},"headline":"Do Ask, Do Exit or Mask: Transgender Service Members, the DOD Guidance on the Prioritizing Military…","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_1583285092.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-13T04:01:01-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-13T02:22:27-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Lesley Wexler","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/wexler","description":"Lesley Wexler is a Professor of Law at the University of Illinois College of Law. Immediately prior to taking the position at Illinois, Wexler was a Professor of Law at Florida State University, whose faculty she joined in 2006 after serving as a Harry A. Bigelow Fellow and Lecturer in Law at the University of Chicago Law School. \r\n\r\nShe received a bachelor's degree in English Literature with honors from the University of Michigan and her J.D. with honors from the University of Chicago, where she served as an associate editor for the Chicago Journal of International Law and article editor for the Chicago Legal Forum. Upon graduating from law school in 2002, Professor Wexler clerked for Judge William Wayne Justice of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, and then for Judge Thomas Reavley of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. \r\n\r\nProfessor Wexler writes, teaches and consults in the public international law fields, especially international humanitarian law, international disaster law, and human rights as well as in the anti-discrimination field more generally. She has published in a variety of journals, including the University of Chicago Law Review, the Yale Journal of International Law, the Chicago Journal of International Law, the Michigan Journal of International Law, the Wake Forest Law Review, the Georgia Law Review, and the Cardozo Law Review. "},{"@type":"Person","name":"Anthony Ghiotto","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/ghiotto","description":"Tony Ghiotto is a Teaching Professor of Law at University of Illinois College of Law, as well as a trial advocacy expert and served as an active duty Air Force judge advocate for twelve years before entering academia. He is the director of the Kimball R. and Karen Gatsis Anderson Center for Advocacy and Professionalism, where he trains future lawyers in trial advocacy, appellate work, negotiations, and professional ethics. A dedicated educator, he also coaches award-winning trial and moot court teams.\r\n\r\nBefore joining academia, Professor Ghiotto spent nearly 12 years as a judge advocate in the U.S. Air Force, handling complex felony prosecutions, advising military leadership, and serving in Afghanistan for detainee proceedings. He continues to serve as a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force Reserves.\r\n\r\nHis scholarship explores criminal procedure and national security law, with publications in the *Harvard National Security Journal* and other law reviews. A Chicago-area native, he earned his J.D. from Emory University School of Law."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Illinois Law professors Lesley M. Wexler and Anthony Ghiotto analyze the impact of the Prioritizing Military Excellence Order, which restricts transgender military service, comparing it to past policies like \u201cDon\u2019t Ask, Don\u2019t Tell\u201d and detailing the order\u2019s effects on transgender service members, military law, national security, and unit cohesion. Professors Wexler and Ghiotto argue that the policy forces transgender troops to either leave service or suppress their identity, ultimately harming military readiness, morale, and legal integrity, and they advocate for legal challenges, state-level protections, and continued resistance to discriminatory policies."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Bankruptcy Court Listens to Survivors of Abuse","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/12/bankruptcy-court-listens-to-survivors-of-abuse"},"headline":"Bankruptcy Court Listens to Survivors of Abuse","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_1942067617.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-12T04:01:24-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-11T19:21:58-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Leslie C. Griffin","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/griffin","description":"<a href=\"https:\/\/law.unlv.edu\/faculty\/leslie-griffin\">Dr. Leslie C. Griffin<\/a> is the William S. Boyd Professor of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Boyd School of Law. Prof. Griffin, who teaches constitutional law and bioethics, is known for her interdisciplinary work in law and religion. She holds a Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Yale University and a J.D. from Stanford Law School. She is author of five editions of the Foundation Press casebook, <em>Law and Religion: Cases and Materials; <\/em>co-author, with Joan H. Krause, of <em>Practicing Bioethics Law; <\/em>co-author, with Marci A. Hamilton, of <em>Learning Constitutional Law<\/em>, and editor of<em> Law and Religion: Cases in Context<\/em>. She is also the author of numerous articles and book chapters about law, religion, politics and ethics. Her most recent article, <em>What Did Those Sixteen Justices Say?<\/em>, 58 Willamette L. Rev. 163 (2022), is about the sixteen Catholics who have been Justices on the Supreme Court.\r\n\r\nProf. Griffin has written numerous briefs defending employees\u2019 civil rights. She is a critic of the ministerial exception, and wrote amicus briefs in <em>Hosanna-Tabor <\/em>and <em>Our Lady of Guadalupe School <\/em>arguing that neither employee was a minister.\r\n\r\nBefore moving to UNLV, Griffin was the Larry and Joanne Doherty Chair in Legal Ethics at the University of Houston Law Center, and a professor at Santa Clara University School of Law. Prof. Griffin clerked for the Honorable Mary M. Schroeder of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and was an assistant counsel in the Department of Justice's Office of Professional Responsibility, which investigates professional misconduct by federal prosecutors. Before law school, she was a professor in the Theology Department at the University of Notre Dame."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"UNLV Boyd School of Law professor Leslie C. Griffin discusses a bankruptcy court decision in In re: The Roman Catholic Bishop of Sacramento, in which Judge Christopher Klein ruled that survivors of clergy sexual abuse could address the court despite objections from the church\u2019s insurers. Professor Griffin argues that while bankruptcy is often used to delay and minimize liability for abuse claims, Judge Klein\u2019s ruling affirms that all courts can and should provide survivors with a platform to be heard, acknowledging the profound human and psychological impact of their experiences."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"If College Presidents Won’t Speak Out in Defense of Democracy and the Rule of Law, Their Faculties Should","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/12/if-college-presidents-wont-speak-out-in-defense-of-democracy-and-the-rule-of-law-their-faculties-should"},"headline":"If College Presidents Won’t Speak Out in Defense of Democracy and the Rule of Law, Their Faculties Should","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_1380504.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-12T04:00:33-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-12T01:29:20-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Austin Sarat","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat","description":"Austin Sarat is the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science at Amherst College.\r\n\r\nProfessor Sarat founded both Amherst College\u2019s Department of Law, Jurisprudence, and Social Thought and the national scholarly association, The Association for the Study of Law, Culture, and the Humanities. He is former President of that Association and has also served as President of the Law and Society Association and of the Consortium of Undergraduate Law and Justice Programs.\r\n\r\nHe is author or editor of more than ninety books including <em>Lethal Injection and the False Promise of Humane Execution<\/em> (Stanford University Press, 2022), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cambridge.org\/core\/books\/death-penalty-on-the-ballot\/75A96223EC39440DB00120B5E851EDEA\">The Death Penalty on the Ballot: American Democracy and the Fate of Capital Punishment<\/a> (Cambridge University Press, 2019), <a href=\"https:\/\/global.oup.com\/academic\/product\/the-lives-of-guns-9780190842925?cc=us&lang=en&\">The Lives of Guns<\/a> (Oxford University Press, 2018), and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sup.org\/books\/title\/?id=23979\">Gruesome Spectacles: Botched Executions and America\u2019s Death Penalty<\/a> (Stanford University Press, 2014).\r\n\r\nHe is editor of the journal <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/home\/lch\">Law, Culture and the Humanities<\/a> and of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com\/products\/books\/series.htm?id=1059-4337\">Studies in Law, Politics, and Society<\/a>\r\n\r\nProfessor Sarat has received numerous prizes and awards including the Harry Kalven Award given by the Law Society Association for \u201cdistinguished research on law and society\u201d; the Reginald Heber Smith Award given biennially to honor the best scholarship on \u201cthe subject of equal access to justice\u201d; the James Boyd White Award, from the Association for the Study of Law, Culture, and the Humanities, given for distinguished scholarly achievement and \u201coutstanding and innovative\u201d contributions to the humanistic study of law; and the Hugo Adam Bedau Award, given to honor significant contributions to death penalty scholarship by the Massachusetts Coalition Against the Death Penalty. \r\n\r\nHis public writing has appeared in such places as <em>The New Republic<\/em>, <em>The Guardian<\/em>, <em>The Boston Globe<\/em>, <em>The Cleveland Plain-Dealer<\/em>, <em>The National Law Journal<\/em>, <em>Slate<\/em>, <em>The Providence Journal<\/em>, <em>The Los Angeles Times<\/em>, <em>The American Prospect<\/em>, <em>Aljazeera America<\/em>, <em>US News<\/em>, <em>CNN<\/em>, <em>Politico<\/em>, <em>The Conversation<\/em>, and <em>The Daily Beast<\/em>. He has been a commentator or guest on <em>HuffPost Live<\/em>, <em>The Morning Briefing on Sirius Radio<\/em>, <em>All Things Considered<\/em>, <em>Morning Edition<\/em>, <em>The Rick Ungar Show<\/em>, <em>Democracy Now<\/em>, <em>ABC World News Tonight<\/em>, <em>All in with Chris Hayes<\/em>, <em>The Point with Ari Melber<\/em>, and <em>The O\u2019Reilly Factor<\/em>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Amherst professor Austin Sarat discusses the role of universities and their faculty in defending democracy, arguing that higher education institutions should take a more active stance against authoritarian threats. Professor Sarat expands on an op-ed by Harvard professors Ryan Enos and Steven Levitsky, asserting that while university presidents should lead efforts, faculty members also have a civic responsibility to publicly advocate for democratic principles rather than waiting for administrators to act."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"The Rusty Chronicles: Notes on Scott Turow’s Presumed Guilty","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/11/the-rusty-chronicles-notes-on-scott-turows-presumed-guilty"},"headline":"The Rusty Chronicles: Notes on Scott Turow’s Presumed Guilty","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/213890792.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-11T04:01:31-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-13T11:37:23-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rodger Citron","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/citron","description":"Rodger D. Citron is the Associate Dean for Research and Scholarship and Professor of Law at Touro University, Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center. From 2014 until mid-2018, he served as the Academic Dean at Touro Law. Professor Citron is a graduate of Yale College, Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude, and Yale Law School, where he was a senior editor of the Yale Law Journal. After law school, Professor Citron clerked for the Hon. Thomas N. O'Neill, Jr., of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Before becoming a law professor, he worked as a trial attorney at the United States Department of Justice; a director at FindLaw, Inc.; and an attorney-advisor at the Federal Communications Commission. Professor Citron's articles have been published in a number of law reviews and also on Slate and SCOTUSblog and in The National Law Journal and The Hartford Courant."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Touro University, Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center professor Rodger D. Citron reviews Scott Turow\u2019s latest legal thriller, Presumed Guilty, focusing on the evolution of Turow\u2019s writing and the transformation of his protagonist, Rusty Sabich, from prosecutor to defense attorney in a rural setting. Professor Citron argues that Turow continues to craft compelling courtroom dramas with thoughtful legal realism, highlighting how Presumed Guilty expands on themes of justice, race, and personal growth, making Rusty not only an older character but a more mature one."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"The Birthright Citizenship Clause Means Exactly What It Says: The Textual and Historical Implausibility of Alternative Interpretations Offered by the Trump Administration and Conservative Commentators such as Randy Barnett, Ilan Wurman, Chuck Cooper and Pete Patterson","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/10/the-birthright-citizenship-clause-means-exactly-what-it-says"},"headline":"The Birthright Citizenship Clause Means Exactly What It Says: The Textual and Historical…","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/shutterstock_458703112.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-10T04:01:52-04:00","dateModified":"2025-03-10T01:39:12-04:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Vikram David Amar","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/amar","description":"Vikram David Amar is a Distinguished Professor of Law at UC Davis School of Law and a Professor of Law and Former Dean at the University of Illinois College of Law on the Urbana-Champaign campus. Immediately prior to taking the position at Illinois in 2015, Amar served as the Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and a Professor of Law at the UC Davis School of Law. He has also had teaching stints at three other law schools affiliated with the University of California: the UC Berkeley School of Law; the UCLA School of Law; and UC Hastings College of the Law.\r\n\r\nHe received a bachelor's degree in history from UC Berkeley and his JD from Yale, where he served as an articles editor for the Yale Law Journal. Upon graduating from law school in 1988, Dean Amar clerked for Judge William A. Norris of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and then for Justice Harry A. Blackmun of the United States Supreme Court. After that he spent a few years at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, devoting half of his time to federal white-collar criminal defense and the other half to complex civil litigation. It appears that Dean Amar was the first person of South Asian heritage to clerk at the U.S. Supreme Court, and was the first American-born person of Indian descent to serve as a dean of a major American law school.\r\n\r\nDean Amar is one of the most eminent and frequently cited authorities in constitutional law, federal courts, and civil procedure. He has produced several books and over 60 articles in leading law reviews. He is a co-author (along with Akhil Reed Amar) of the upcoming edition of the six-volume <em>Treatise on Constitutional Law<\/em> (West Publishing Co., 6th ed. 2021) pioneered by Ron Rotunda and John Nowak, as well as the hardbound and soft-cover one-volume hornbooks that derive from it. He is also a co-author (along with Jonathan Varat) of <em>Constitutional Law: Cases and Materials<\/em> (Foundation Press, 15th ed. 2017), a co-author on multiple volumes of the Wright & Miller <em>Federal Practice and Procedure<\/em> Treatise (West Publishing Co. 2006), and a co-author (along with John Oakley) of a one-volume work on <em>American Civil Procedure<\/em> (Kluwer, 2008)."},{"@type":"Person","name":"Jason Mazzone","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/mazzone","description":"Jason Mazzone is the Albert E. Jenner, Jr. Professor of Law at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Director of the Illinois Program in Constitutional Theory, History, and Law. \r\n\r\nProfessor Mazzone\u2019s primary field of research and teaching is constitutional law and history. He works principally on issues of constitutional structure and institutional design with a particular focus on relationships between structural arrangements and individual rights. His groundbreaking work on the Constitution of the United States has appeared in dozens of prominent legal journals. He regularly advises, on a <em>pro bono<\/em> basis, litigants in cases before the Supreme Court of the United States and in other courts. A good part of Professor Mazzone\u2019s research involves comparative issues in constitutional law. He has lectured around the world on this topic and he has advised new democracies during their processes of drafting and implementing their own constitutions. Unifying all of this work is a close attention to the role of culture in grounding and shaping formal constitutions, a topic Professor Mazzone first explored in his dissertation at Yale University. Professor Mazzone is currently at work on two books: one a global study of the future of constitutional rights; the other, a study of how the U.S. Constitution serves as both a unifying and dividing force in American society. \r\n\r\nProfessor Mazzone works also in the field of intellectual property law. He is the world\u2019s leading expert on overreaching assertions of intellectual property rights. In a famous article published in the <em>NYU Law Review<\/em> in 2006, Professor Mazzone coined the term, \u201ccopyfraud,\u201d to describe claims of copyright in works that are actually in the public domain and cannot be copyrighted by anyone. That article generated scores of studies by other academic researchers and \u201ccopyfraud\u201d became the tagline for popular criticism of excessive intellectual property claims. Professor Mazzone\u2019s acclaimed book, <em>Copyfraud and Other Abuses of Intellectual Property Law<\/em>, was published in 2011 by Stanford University Press. Professor Mazzone\u2019s work on overreaching intellectual property claims has produced legislative reforms in France and other countries; provided the framework for high-profile lawsuits to limit intellectual property rights to their statutorily-designated scope; inspired symposia and conferences at home and abroad; shaped the work of public interest organizations and legal clinics devoted to protecting the public domain; provided guidance to the work of the U.S. Copyright Office and the U.K. Intellectual Property Office; and served as a framework for rethinking key aspects of our system of intellectual property laws. \r\n\r\nProfessor Mazzone received his undergraduate and law degrees from Harvard University, a master\u2019s degree from Stanford University, and a master\u2019s and doctorate from Yale University. While a student he worked with Laurence H. Tribe on constitutional cases in the Supreme Court and for Robert D. Putnam on the bestselling book <em>Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community<\/em>. He served also as Rapporteur to the Saguaro Seminar on Civic Engagement in America, a workshop group whose members included then-Illinois State Senator Barack Obama. Before entering law teaching, Professor Mazzone clerked for Judge Robert D. Sack of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and for Judge John G. Koeltl of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and he practiced intellectual property law in New York City. \r\n\r\nProfessor Mazzone is a member of the American Law Institute and a fellow of the European Law Institute. He is Chair of the Illinois-Bologna Conference on Comparative Constitutional History, a member of the Advisory Board of the Italian Law Journal, and a member of the International Association of Constitutional Law Research Group on Constitutionalism in Illiberal Democracies. He has also served on the Board of Trustees of the Copyright Society of the USA. His scholarship has been cited by many courts, including the Supreme Court of the United States. He is a regular media commentator and he has written about legal issues for <em>The New York Times<\/em> and other national newspapers. Professor Mazzone blogs at Balkinization."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"UC Davis Law professor Vikram David Amar and Illinois Law professor Jason Mazzone discuss the scope and original intent of the Fourteenth Amendment\u2019s Citizenship Clause, particularly in response to a recent executive order issued by President Trump that seeks to limit birthright citizenship. Professors Amar and Mazzone argue that the executive order (and the few legal scholars who endorse its legal basis) misinterprets the Constitution by imposing parental status requirements that are not present in the text, and they explain that both historical and legal precedent overwhelmingly support the conventional interpretation that all persons born on U.S. soil and subject to its laws are citizens."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Professor Alan Dershowitz’s Ill-Considered Defense of the Quid Pro Quo in the Eric Adams Prosecution","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/07/professor-alan-dershowitzs-ill-considered-defense-of-the-quid-pro-quo-in-the-eric-adams-prosecution"},"headline":"Professor Alan Dershowitz’s Ill-Considered Defense of the Quid Pro Quo in the Eric Adams Prosecution","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/shutterstock_2176090549.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-07T05:01:07-05:00","dateModified":"2025-03-06T14:10:02-05:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jon May","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/may","description":"Jon May is a criminal defense attorney and former federal prosecutor. His firm, Creative Criminal Defense Consultants, headquartered in Boca Raton, Fla., represents individuals and companies in federal proceedings nationally. His cases have included the defense of Gen. Manuel Antonio Noriega, a challenge to Florida\u2019s election law during the 2000 presidential election, and the ACLU\u2019s challenge of Florida\u2019s seizure of Rush Limbaugh\u2019s medical records. He is the author of \"Who Says You Can't: Strategy and Tactics For Becoming a More Creative Criminal Defense Lawyer.\""}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Criminal defense attorney Jon May critiques Professor Alan Dershowitz\u2019s defense of the Department of Justice\u2019s decision to dismiss criminal charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams and argues that the deal is unlike typical plea bargains in federal criminal cases. Mr. May contends that Adams\u2019s agreement, which involves no criminal penalty, dangerously expands the scope of prosecutorial discretion and could lead to a system where defendants barter extrajudicial favors to avoid prosecution, undermining principles of justice."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Do State Legislatures Have to Obey U.S. Supreme Court Decisions?","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/07/do-state-legislatures-have-to-obey-u-s-supreme-court-decisions"},"headline":"Do State Legislatures Have to Obey U.S. Supreme Court Decisions?","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/shutterstock_654050020.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-07T05:00:57-05:00","dateModified":"2025-03-07T02:40:07-05:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Austin Sarat","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat","description":"Austin Sarat is the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science at Amherst College.\r\n\r\nProfessor Sarat founded both Amherst College\u2019s Department of Law, Jurisprudence, and Social Thought and the national scholarly association, The Association for the Study of Law, Culture, and the Humanities. He is former President of that Association and has also served as President of the Law and Society Association and of the Consortium of Undergraduate Law and Justice Programs.\r\n\r\nHe is author or editor of more than ninety books including <em>Lethal Injection and the False Promise of Humane Execution<\/em> (Stanford University Press, 2022), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cambridge.org\/core\/books\/death-penalty-on-the-ballot\/75A96223EC39440DB00120B5E851EDEA\">The Death Penalty on the Ballot: American Democracy and the Fate of Capital Punishment<\/a> (Cambridge University Press, 2019), <a href=\"https:\/\/global.oup.com\/academic\/product\/the-lives-of-guns-9780190842925?cc=us&lang=en&\">The Lives of Guns<\/a> (Oxford University Press, 2018), and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sup.org\/books\/title\/?id=23979\">Gruesome Spectacles: Botched Executions and America\u2019s Death Penalty<\/a> (Stanford University Press, 2014).\r\n\r\nHe is editor of the journal <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/home\/lch\">Law, Culture and the Humanities<\/a> and of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com\/products\/books\/series.htm?id=1059-4337\">Studies in Law, Politics, and Society<\/a>\r\n\r\nProfessor Sarat has received numerous prizes and awards including the Harry Kalven Award given by the Law Society Association for \u201cdistinguished research on law and society\u201d; the Reginald Heber Smith Award given biennially to honor the best scholarship on \u201cthe subject of equal access to justice\u201d; the James Boyd White Award, from the Association for the Study of Law, Culture, and the Humanities, given for distinguished scholarly achievement and \u201coutstanding and innovative\u201d contributions to the humanistic study of law; and the Hugo Adam Bedau Award, given to honor significant contributions to death penalty scholarship by the Massachusetts Coalition Against the Death Penalty. \r\n\r\nHis public writing has appeared in such places as <em>The New Republic<\/em>, <em>The Guardian<\/em>, <em>The Boston Globe<\/em>, <em>The Cleveland Plain-Dealer<\/em>, <em>The National Law Journal<\/em>, <em>Slate<\/em>, <em>The Providence Journal<\/em>, <em>The Los Angeles Times<\/em>, <em>The American Prospect<\/em>, <em>Aljazeera America<\/em>, <em>US News<\/em>, <em>CNN<\/em>, <em>Politico<\/em>, <em>The Conversation<\/em>, and <em>The Daily Beast<\/em>. He has been a commentator or guest on <em>HuffPost Live<\/em>, <em>The Morning Briefing on Sirius Radio<\/em>, <em>All Things Considered<\/em>, <em>Morning Edition<\/em>, <em>The Rick Ungar Show<\/em>, <em>Democracy Now<\/em>, <em>ABC World News Tonight<\/em>, <em>All in with Chris Hayes<\/em>, <em>The Point with Ari Melber<\/em>, and <em>The O\u2019Reilly Factor<\/em>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Amherst professor Austin Sarat discusses how several state legislatures, particularly Alabama, are passing laws allowing the death penalty for child rape despite a 2008 Supreme Court ruling, Kennedy v. Louisiana, that declared such punishment unconstitutional. Professor Sarat argues that this strategic legislative defiance represents a dangerous trend that threatens constitutional order, as lawmakers are deliberately passing unconstitutional laws hoping the current conservative-majority Supreme Court will overturn precedent, similar to the strategy that led to Roe v. Wade being overturned."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Bribery Enters its Golden Age","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/06/bribery-enters-its-golden-age"},"headline":"Bribery Enters its Golden Age","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_2581689079.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-06T05:01:21-05:00","dateModified":"2025-03-06T12:09:08-05:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"James Sample","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/sample","description":"James Sample is a Professor of Constitutional Law at the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University. He is reachable at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jsample.com\/\">jsample.com<\/a>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Hofstra Law professor James Sample examines President Donald Trump\u2019s conduct that facilitates corruption, particularly the launch of a cryptocurrency scheme and the broader erosion of anti-corruption safeguards, including weakened bribery laws, de-prioritized enforcement of foreign influence regulations, and the dismissal of government watchdogs. Professor Sample argues that these actions, along with Supreme Court rulings limiting bribery prosecutions, have systemically undermined the rule of law, fostering an environment where public officials can engage in transactional governance that threatens democracy itself."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"Jesus Wept: We Should Weep Too","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/06/jesus-wept-we-should-weep-too"},"headline":"Jesus Wept: We Should Weep Too","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_3861493.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-06T05:01:06-05:00","dateModified":"2025-03-04T17:13:46-05:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Leslie C. Griffin","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/griffin","description":"<a href=\"https:\/\/law.unlv.edu\/faculty\/leslie-griffin\">Dr. Leslie C. Griffin<\/a> is the William S. Boyd Professor of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Boyd School of Law. Prof. Griffin, who teaches constitutional law and bioethics, is known for her interdisciplinary work in law and religion. She holds a Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Yale University and a J.D. from Stanford Law School. She is author of five editions of the Foundation Press casebook, <em>Law and Religion: Cases and Materials; <\/em>co-author, with Joan H. Krause, of <em>Practicing Bioethics Law; <\/em>co-author, with Marci A. Hamilton, of <em>Learning Constitutional Law<\/em>, and editor of<em> Law and Religion: Cases in Context<\/em>. She is also the author of numerous articles and book chapters about law, religion, politics and ethics. Her most recent article, <em>What Did Those Sixteen Justices Say?<\/em>, 58 Willamette L. Rev. 163 (2022), is about the sixteen Catholics who have been Justices on the Supreme Court.\r\n\r\nProf. Griffin has written numerous briefs defending employees\u2019 civil rights. She is a critic of the ministerial exception, and wrote amicus briefs in <em>Hosanna-Tabor <\/em>and <em>Our Lady of Guadalupe School <\/em>arguing that neither employee was a minister.\r\n\r\nBefore moving to UNLV, Griffin was the Larry and Joanne Doherty Chair in Legal Ethics at the University of Houston Law Center, and a professor at Santa Clara University School of Law. Prof. Griffin clerked for the Honorable Mary M. Schroeder of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and was an assistant counsel in the Department of Justice's Office of Professional Responsibility, which investigates professional misconduct by federal prosecutors. Before law school, she was a professor in the Theology Department at the University of Notre Dame."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"UNLV Boyd School of Law professor Leslie C. Griffin discusses the long history of child sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church and the role of various popes in either ignoring or covering up allegations against clergy, drawing from investigative journalist Philip Shenon\u2019s book on the topic. Professor Griffin argues that successive popes\u2014Pius XII through Francis\u2014failed to take meaningful action against abusers, instead prioritizing the protection of the Church\u2019s reputation, and she suggests that the election of the next pope will determine whether real change ever occurs."}</script> <script type=application/ld+json>{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BlogPosting","name":"A Constitutional Law Casebook Symposium in an Era of Constitutional Upheaval","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/05/a-constitutional-law-casebook-symposium-in-an-era-of-constitutional-upheaval"},"headline":"A Constitutional Law Casebook Symposium in an Era of Constitutional Upheaval","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/shutterstock_243773131.jpg?quality=100&resize=1200%2C440&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1","width":"1200","height":"440","representativeOfPage":"http://schema.org/True"},"datePublished":"2025-03-05T05:01:06-05:00","dateModified":"2025-03-03T01:50:38-05:00","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Michael C. Dorf","url":"https://verdict.justia.com/author/dorf","description":"Michael C. Dorf is the Robert S. Stevens Professor of Law at Cornell University Law School. He has written hundreds of popular essays, dozens of scholarly articles, and six books on constitutional law and related subjects. Professor Dorf blogs at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dorfonlaw.org\/\">Dorf on Law<\/a>."}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Verdict - Legal Analysis and Commentary from Justia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/branding/logos/justia.svg","height":"60","width":"200"}},"articleBody":"Cornell Law professor Michael C. Dorf discusses a recent symposium on constitutional law casebooks, highlighting the challenges of teaching constitutional law at a time when the Trump administration and the Supreme Court are reshaping legal precedents. Professor Dorf argues that while these changes present difficulties, it remains essential to teach established legal principles and encourage students to critically engage with unresolved legal questions, including, in some cases, through the use of rhetorical questions in casebooks."}</script> <script async defer src=https://justatic.com/e/widgets/js/justia.js></script> </head><body class="verdict_main " id=verdict_body data-directive=j-gdpr data-privacy-policy-url=https://www.justia.com/privacy-policy/ > <noscript><iframe src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-P2QTGCR" height=0 width=0 style=display:none;visibility:hidden></iframe></noscript><div class=container><div class=cwrap><header id=header role=banner><div class=header-tag-group><div class=layout-max-limit><div id=verdict-logo><div class=logo-wrap> <a href=/ class=logo-link title="Verdict Homepage"> <svg class=logo-svg width=518 height=93 viewbox="0 0 518 93" alt="Verdict Logo"> <use data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-action=Header data-gtm-label="Logo - 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Dorf</a></div></div></div><div class="trending-post trending-latest"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/01/gavin-newsoms-death-penalty-dilemma class=post-image title="Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma"> <img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_2411709961.jpg?quality=90&resize=120%2C100&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=120 height=100 alt="Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma"></a><div class=post-info> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/01/gavin-newsoms-death-penalty-dilemma class=post-title title="Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma">Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma</a><div class="author vcard"> By <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat class="author-156 post-author-link" rel=author>Austin Sarat</a></div></div></div></div></div></div><div id=main><div class=mwrap><section class=content><div class=bodytext><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28420><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/04/united-states-attorney-for-the-district-of-columbia-shows-what-weaponized-justice-really-looks-like title="Permalink to United States Attorney for The District of Columbia Shows What Weaponized Justice Really Looks Like"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to United States Attorney for The District of Columbia Shows What Weaponized Justice Really Looks Like</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/shutterstock_693016663.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="United States Attorney for The District of Columbia Shows What Weaponized Justice Really Looks Like"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/04/united-states-attorney-for-the-district-of-columbia-shows-what-weaponized-justice-really-looks-like title="Permalink to United States Attorney for The District of Columbia Shows What Weaponized Justice Really Looks Like" rel=bookmark> United States Attorney for The District of Columbia Shows What Weaponized Justice Really Looks Like </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-04-04T04:01:31-04:00 class="post-date published">4 Apr 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat class="url fn author-sarat author-156 post-author-link" rel=author>Austin Sarat</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Amherst professor Austin Sarat critiques the nomination of Edward Martin as U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, examining how his conduct exemplifies what critics call the “weaponization” of the Justice Department under President Trump. Professor Sarat argues that Martin has misused his prosecutorial power for political ends—especially by pursuing partisan investigations of President Joe Biden and his family—and urges the Senate to reject his confirmation.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/04/united-states-attorney-for-the-district-of-columbia-shows-what-weaponized-justice-really-looks-like title="Continue Reading United States Attorney for The District of Columbia Shows What Weaponized Justice Really Looks Like">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/politics title="View all posts in Politics">Politics</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28414><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/02/is-house-speaker-mike-johnsons-proposal-to-eliminate-federal-judgeships-constitutional title="Permalink to Is House Speaker Mike Johnson’s Proposal to Eliminate Federal Judgeships Constitutional?"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Is House Speaker Mike Johnson’s Proposal to Eliminate Federal Judgeships Constitutional?</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_2342942251.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Is House Speaker Mike Johnson’s Proposal to Eliminate Federal Judgeships Constitutional?"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/02/is-house-speaker-mike-johnsons-proposal-to-eliminate-federal-judgeships-constitutional title="Permalink to Is House Speaker Mike Johnson’s Proposal to Eliminate Federal Judgeships Constitutional?" rel=bookmark> Is House Speaker Mike Johnson’s Proposal to Eliminate Federal Judgeships Constitutional? </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-04-02T04:01:06-04:00 class="post-date published">2 Apr 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/dorf class="url fn author-dorf author-17 post-author-link" rel=author>Michael C. Dorf</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Cornell Law professor Michael C. Dorf examines recent calls by President Donald Trump, Speaker Mike Johnson, and their allies in Congress to remove or sideline federal judges who have blocked Trump administration policies, either through impeachment or by eliminating the courts themselves. Professor Dorf argues that such tactics are constitutionally dubious and dangerously undermine judicial independence, warning that the real threat to the republic comes not from the judges, but from efforts to evade legal checks on presidential power.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/02/is-house-speaker-mike-johnsons-proposal-to-eliminate-federal-judgeships-constitutional title="Continue Reading Is House Speaker Mike Johnson’s Proposal to Eliminate Federal Judgeships Constitutional?">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/constitutional-law title="View all posts in Constitutional Law">Constitutional Law</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28417><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/01/gavin-newsoms-death-penalty-dilemma title="Permalink to Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_2411709961.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/01/gavin-newsoms-death-penalty-dilemma title="Permalink to Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma" rel=bookmark> Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-04-01T04:01:01-04:00 class="post-date published">1 Apr 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat class="url fn author-sarat author-156 post-author-link" rel=author>Austin Sarat</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Amherst professor Austin Sarat examines California Governor Gavin Newsom’s shifting political positions, particularly focusing on the uncertainty surrounding his stance on the death penalty as he eyes a potential 2028 presidential run. Professor Sarat argues that Newsom’s credibility and legacy—especially given his prior vocal opposition to capital punishment—hinge on whether he will act decisively to commute the state's death row sentences before leaving office, a move that could significantly influence the national debate on the death penalty.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/04/01/gavin-newsoms-death-penalty-dilemma title="Continue Reading Gavin Newsom’s Death Penalty Dilemma">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/politics title="View all posts in Politics">Politics</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28410><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/31/important-developments-in-the-white-house-and-in-the-fifth-circuits-wetzel-case-make-more-likely-and-more-important-supreme-court-resolution-of-what-federal-election-day-m title="Permalink to Important Developments in the White House and in the Fifth Circuit’s Wetzel Case Make More Likely (and More Important) Supreme Court Resolution of What Federal “Election Day” Means"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Important Developments in the White House and in the Fifth Circuit’s Wetzel Case Make More Likely (and More Important) Supreme Court Resolution of What Federal “Election Day” Means</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/shutterstock_13034893.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Important Developments in the White House and in the Fifth Circuit’s Wetzel Case Make More Likely (and More Important) Supreme Court Resolution of What Federal “Election Day” Means"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/31/important-developments-in-the-white-house-and-in-the-fifth-circuits-wetzel-case-make-more-likely-and-more-important-supreme-court-resolution-of-what-federal-election-day-m title="Permalink to Important Developments in the White House and in the Fifth Circuit’s Wetzel Case Make More Likely (and More Important) Supreme Court Resolution of What Federal “Election Day” Means" rel=bookmark> Important Developments in the White House and in the Fifth Circuit’s <em>Wetzel</em> Case Make More Likely (and More Important) Supreme Court Resolution of What Federal “Election Day” Means </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-31T04:01:39-04:00 class="post-date published">31 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/amar class="url fn author-amar author-10 post-author-link" rel=author>Vikram David Amar</a> and <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/mazzone class="url fn author-mazzone author-142 post-author-link" rel=author>Jason Mazzone</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>UC Davis Law professor Vikram David Amar and Illinois Law professor Jason Mazzone address the Fifth Circuit’s refusal to rehear a case challenging a Mississippi law allowing mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted if received within five business days. Professors Amar and Mazzone explore the broader implications of that decision—especially in light of a recent Executive Order by President Donald Trump that adopts a strict interpretation of federal “Election Day” laws. The authors argue the Fifth Circuit’s reasoning is flawed, that longstanding state practices allowing some flexibility in ballot receipt are legally and constitutionally sound, and that both the court’s ruling and the Executive Order reflect an overly rigid and potentially partisan approach that should ultimately be reviewed and corrected by the U.S. Supreme Court.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/31/important-developments-in-the-white-house-and-in-the-fifth-circuits-wetzel-case-make-more-likely-and-more-important-supreme-court-resolution-of-what-federal-election-day-m title="Continue Reading Important Developments in the White House and in the Fifth Circuit’s Wetzel Case Make More Likely (and More Important) Supreme Court Resolution of What Federal “Election Day” Means">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/constitutional-law title="View all posts in Constitutional Law">Constitutional Law</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28404><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/28/social-security-is-essential-efficient-gasp-and-definitely-not-a-ponzi-scheme-2 title="Permalink to Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part Two of Two"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part Two of Two</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/ChatGPT-Image-Mar-27-2025-10_37_21-PM.png?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part Two of Two"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/28/social-security-is-essential-efficient-gasp-and-definitely-not-a-ponzi-scheme-2 title="Permalink to Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part Two of Two" rel=bookmark> Social Security is Essential, Efficient (<em>Gasp!</em>), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: <span class=subtitle>Part Two of Two</span> </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-28T04:01:18-04:00 class="post-date published">28 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/buchanan class="url fn author-buchanan author-16 post-author-link" rel=author>Neil H. Buchanan</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>In this second of a two-part series of columns discussing Donald Trump and Republicans’ efforts to dismantle Social Security, University of Toronto visiting law professor and economist Neil H. Buchanan argues that despite public reassurances, Republican initiatives—especially those supported by figures like Elon Musk—are methodically weakening Social Security, threatening a vital, efficient, and historically successful program that prevents elder poverty and supports millions of Americans. Professor Buchanan contends that these efforts are based on false narratives, including misleading comparisons to Ponzi schemes and deceptive efficiency claims, all aimed at undermining public confidence in the system—particularly among younger generations—in order to justify harmful privatization schemes that would ultimately benefit Wall Street at the expense of working Americans.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/28/social-security-is-essential-efficient-gasp-and-definitely-not-a-ponzi-scheme-2 title="Continue Reading Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part Two of Two">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/politics title="View all posts in Politics">Politics</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28399><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/27/social-security-is-essential-efficient-gasp-and-definitely-not-a-ponzi-scheme title="Permalink to Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part One of Two"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part One of Two</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/shutterstock_306158105.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part One of Two"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/27/social-security-is-essential-efficient-gasp-and-definitely-not-a-ponzi-scheme title="Permalink to Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part One of Two" rel=bookmark> Social Security is Essential, Efficient (<em>Gasp!</em>), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: <span class=subtitle>Part One of Two</span> </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-27T14:24:25-04:00 class="post-date published">27 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/buchanan class="url fn author-buchanan author-16 post-author-link" rel=author>Neil H. Buchanan</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>University of Toronto visiting law professor and economist Neil H. Buchanan addresses the Trump administration’s attacks on Social Security, particularly through cutting the budget to force the system to deteriorate, and he debunks the false claim—recently amplified by Elon Musk—that Social Security is a Ponzi scheme. Professor Buchanan argues that Social Security is a sustainable, pay-as-you-go system that functions similarly to private banking and retirement savings, and that calling it a Ponzi scheme reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of both financial systems and economic sustainability.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/27/social-security-is-essential-efficient-gasp-and-definitely-not-a-ponzi-scheme title="Continue Reading Social Security is Essential, Efficient (Gasp!), and Definitely NOT a Ponzi Scheme: Part One of Two">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/employment-law title="View all posts in Employment Law">Employment Law</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28387><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/19/trumps-justice-department-plays-dirty title="Permalink to Trump’s Justice Department Plays Dirty"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Trump’s Justice Department Plays Dirty</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/shutterstock_598168121.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Trump’s Justice Department Plays Dirty"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/19/trumps-justice-department-plays-dirty title="Permalink to Trump’s Justice Department Plays Dirty" rel=bookmark> Trump’s Justice Department Plays Dirty </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-19T04:01:40-04:00 class="post-date published">19 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/dorf class="url fn author-dorf author-17 post-author-link" rel=author>Michael C. Dorf</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Cornell Law professor Michael C. Dorf examines the Trump administration’s apparent disregard for judicial authority, focusing on its defiance of a court order prohibiting the use of the Alien Enemies Act for deportations and its broader pattern of legal manipulation. Professor Dorf argues that even if technical compliance with court rulings is maintained, the administration’s deceptive tactics and overt hostility toward judicial oversight severely undermine the rule of law and pose a grave threat to American constitutional democracy.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/19/trumps-justice-department-plays-dirty title="Continue Reading Trump’s Justice Department Plays Dirty">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/constitutional-law title="View all posts in Constitutional Law">Constitutional Law</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28389><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/19/schumer-was-unfortunately-right-but-either-way-the-infighting-must-stop title="Permalink to Schumer Was (Unfortunately) Right, But Either Way, the Infighting Must Stop"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Schumer Was (Unfortunately) Right, But Either Way, the Infighting Must Stop</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/shutterstock_305852246.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Schumer Was (Unfortunately) Right, But Either Way, the Infighting Must Stop"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/19/schumer-was-unfortunately-right-but-either-way-the-infighting-must-stop title="Permalink to Schumer Was (Unfortunately) Right, But Either Way, the Infighting Must Stop" rel=bookmark> Schumer Was (Unfortunately) Right, But Either Way, the Infighting Must Stop </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-19T04:00:32-04:00 class="post-date published">19 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/buchanan class="url fn author-buchanan author-16 post-author-link" rel=author>Neil H. Buchanan</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>University of Toronto visiting law professor and economist Neil H. Buchanan discusses Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s decision to avert a government shutdown by supporting a controversial continuing resolution (CR), despite backlash from Democrats and anti-Trump groups who saw it as a capitulation. Professor Buchanan argues that while Schumer is not typically a progressive hero, he made the right decision to prevent lasting harm, as a shutdown would have handed excessive power to Trump and Musk. Professor Buchanan calls upon Democrats to stop infighting so that they can effectively resist the rise of authoritarianism.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/19/schumer-was-unfortunately-right-but-either-way-the-infighting-must-stop title="Continue Reading Schumer Was (Unfortunately) Right, But Either Way, the Infighting Must Stop">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/constitutional-law title="View all posts in Constitutional Law">Constitutional Law</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28385><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/18/guantanamo-and-the-performative-president title="Permalink to Guantanamo and the Performative President"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Guantanamo and the Performative President</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/shutterstock_330108026.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Guantanamo and the Performative President"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/18/guantanamo-and-the-performative-president title="Permalink to Guantanamo and the Performative President" rel=bookmark> Guantanamo and the Performative President </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-18T04:01:42-04:00 class="post-date published">18 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/margulies class="url fn author-margulies author-95 post-author-link" rel=author>Joseph Margulies</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Cornell professor Joseph Margulies discusses President Donald Trump’s attempt to use Guantanamo Bay as a detention facility for migrants, highlighting the legal and logistical obstacles that make such plan infeasible. Professor Margulies argues that Trump’s real goal has never been about policy implementation but rather about shaping public perception—using Guantanamo as a symbol to dehumanize immigrants and redefine the national identity around exclusion.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/18/guantanamo-and-the-performative-president title="Continue Reading Guantanamo and the Performative President">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/constitutional-law/civil-rights title="View all posts in Civil Rights">Civil Rights</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28383><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/17/the-trump-administration-defies-a-court-order-in-the-venezuelan-gang-case-and-pushes-america-into-unchartered-territory title="Permalink to The Trump Administration Defies a Court Order in the Venezuelan Gang Case and Pushes America Into Unchartered Territory"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to The Trump Administration Defies a Court Order in the Venezuelan Gang Case and Pushes America Into Unchartered Territory</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/shutterstock_782972068.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="The Trump Administration Defies a Court Order in the Venezuelan Gang Case and Pushes America Into Unchartered Territory"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/17/the-trump-administration-defies-a-court-order-in-the-venezuelan-gang-case-and-pushes-america-into-unchartered-territory title="Permalink to The Trump Administration Defies a Court Order in the Venezuelan Gang Case and Pushes America Into Unchartered Territory" rel=bookmark> The Trump Administration Defies a Court Order in the Venezuelan Gang Case and Pushes America Into Unchartered Territory </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-17T04:01:18-04:00 class="post-date published">17 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat class="url fn author-sarat author-156 post-author-link" rel=author>Austin Sarat</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Amherst professor Austin Sarat discusses the Trump administration’s late-night deportation of alleged Venezuelan gang members despite a federal judge’s order to halt the process and examines the implications for constitutional law and executive power. Professor Sarat argues that by defying the court order, the administration dangerously undermined the rule of law, demonstrating its willingness to consolidate power and disregard constitutional checks, marking a troubling crisis for American democracy.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/17/the-trump-administration-defies-a-court-order-in-the-venezuelan-gang-case-and-pushes-america-into-unchartered-territory title="Continue Reading The Trump Administration Defies a Court Order in the Venezuelan Gang Case and Pushes America Into Unchartered Territory">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/constitutional-law title="View all posts in Constitutional Law">Constitutional Law</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28378><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/13/do-ask-do-exit-or-mask title="Permalink to Do Ask, Do Exit or Mask: Transgender Service Members, the DOD Guidance on the Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness Executive Order, and Why It Should Matter to Us All"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Do Ask, Do Exit or Mask: Transgender Service Members, the DOD Guidance on the Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness Executive Order, and Why It Should Matter to Us All</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_1583285092.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Do Ask, Do Exit or Mask: Transgender Service Members, the DOD Guidance on the Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness Executive Order, and Why It Should Matter to Us All"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/13/do-ask-do-exit-or-mask title="Permalink to Do Ask, Do Exit or Mask: Transgender Service Members, the DOD Guidance on the Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness Executive Order, and Why It Should Matter to Us All" rel=bookmark> Do Ask, Do Exit or Mask: <span class=subtitle>Transgender Service Members, the DOD Guidance on the Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness Executive Order, and Why It Should Matter to Us All</span> </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-13T04:01:01-04:00 class="post-date published">13 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/wexler class="url fn author-wexler author-133 post-author-link" rel=author>Lesley Wexler</a> and <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/ghiotto class="url fn author-ghiotto author-236 post-author-link" rel=author>Anthony Ghiotto</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Illinois Law professors Lesley M. Wexler and Anthony Ghiotto analyze the impact of the Prioritizing Military Excellence Order, which restricts transgender military service, comparing it to past policies like “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and detailing the order’s effects on transgender service members, military law, national security, and unit cohesion. Professors Wexler and Ghiotto argue that the policy forces transgender troops to either leave service or suppress their identity, ultimately harming military readiness, morale, and legal integrity, and they advocate for legal challenges, state-level protections, and continued resistance to discriminatory policies.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/13/do-ask-do-exit-or-mask title="Continue Reading Do Ask, Do Exit or Mask: Transgender Service Members, the DOD Guidance on the Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness Executive Order, and Why It Should Matter to Us All">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/military-law title="View all posts in Military Law">Military Law</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28371><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/12/bankruptcy-court-listens-to-survivors-of-abuse title="Permalink to Bankruptcy Court Listens to Survivors of Abuse"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Bankruptcy Court Listens to Survivors of Abuse</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_1942067617.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Bankruptcy Court Listens to Survivors of Abuse"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/12/bankruptcy-court-listens-to-survivors-of-abuse title="Permalink to Bankruptcy Court Listens to Survivors of Abuse" rel=bookmark> Bankruptcy Court Listens to Survivors of Abuse </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-12T04:01:24-04:00 class="post-date published">12 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/griffin class="url fn author-griffin author-103 post-author-link" rel=author>Leslie C. Griffin</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>UNLV Boyd School of Law professor Leslie C. Griffin discusses a bankruptcy court decision in <em>In re: The Roman Catholic Bishop of Sacramento</em>, in which Judge Christopher Klein ruled that survivors of clergy sexual abuse could address the court despite objections from the church’s insurers. Professor Griffin argues that while bankruptcy is often used to delay and minimize liability for abuse claims, Judge Klein’s ruling affirms that all courts can and should provide survivors with a platform to be heard, acknowledging the profound human and psychological impact of their experiences.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/12/bankruptcy-court-listens-to-survivors-of-abuse title="Continue Reading Bankruptcy Court Listens to Survivors of Abuse">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/courts-and-procedure title="View all posts in Courts and Procedure">Courts and Procedure</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28375><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/12/if-college-presidents-wont-speak-out-in-defense-of-democracy-and-the-rule-of-law-their-faculties-should title="Permalink to If College Presidents Won’t Speak Out in Defense of Democracy and the Rule of Law, Their Faculties Should"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to If College Presidents Won’t Speak Out in Defense of Democracy and the Rule of Law, Their Faculties Should</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_1380504.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="If College Presidents Won’t Speak Out in Defense of Democracy and the Rule of Law, Their Faculties Should"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/12/if-college-presidents-wont-speak-out-in-defense-of-democracy-and-the-rule-of-law-their-faculties-should title="Permalink to If College Presidents Won’t Speak Out in Defense of Democracy and the Rule of Law, Their Faculties Should" rel=bookmark> If College Presidents Won’t Speak Out in Defense of Democracy and the Rule of Law, Their Faculties Should </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-12T04:00:33-04:00 class="post-date published">12 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat class="url fn author-sarat author-156 post-author-link" rel=author>Austin Sarat</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Amherst professor Austin Sarat discusses the role of universities and their faculty in defending democracy, arguing that higher education institutions should take a more active stance against authoritarian threats. Professor Sarat expands on an op-ed by Harvard professors Ryan Enos and Steven Levitsky, asserting that while university presidents should lead efforts, faculty members also have a civic responsibility to publicly advocate for democratic principles rather than waiting for administrators to act.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/12/if-college-presidents-wont-speak-out-in-defense-of-democracy-and-the-rule-of-law-their-faculties-should title="Continue Reading If College Presidents Won’t Speak Out in Defense of Democracy and the Rule of Law, Their Faculties Should">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/education title="View all posts in Education">Education</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28368><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/11/the-rusty-chronicles-notes-on-scott-turows-presumed-guilty title="Permalink to The Rusty Chronicles: Notes on Scott Turow’s Presumed Guilty"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to The Rusty Chronicles: Notes on Scott Turow’s Presumed Guilty</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/213890792.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="The Rusty Chronicles: Notes on Scott Turow’s Presumed Guilty"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/11/the-rusty-chronicles-notes-on-scott-turows-presumed-guilty title="Permalink to The Rusty Chronicles: Notes on Scott Turow’s Presumed Guilty" rel=bookmark> The Rusty Chronicles: Notes on Scott Turow’s <em>Presumed Guilty</em> </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-11T04:01:31-04:00 class="post-date published">11 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/citron class="url fn author-citron author-83 post-author-link" rel=author>Rodger Citron</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Touro University, Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center professor Rodger D. Citron reviews Scott Turow’s latest legal thriller, <em>Presumed Guilty</em>, focusing on the evolution of Turow’s writing and the transformation of his protagonist, Rusty Sabich, from prosecutor to defense attorney in a rural setting. Professor Citron argues that Turow continues to craft compelling courtroom dramas with thoughtful legal realism, highlighting how <em>Presumed Guilty</em> expands on themes of justice, race, and personal growth, making Rusty not only an older character but a more mature one.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/11/the-rusty-chronicles-notes-on-scott-turows-presumed-guilty title="Continue Reading The Rusty Chronicles: Notes on Scott Turow’s Presumed Guilty">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/book-reviews title="View all posts in Book Reviews">Book Reviews</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28366><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/10/the-birthright-citizenship-clause-means-exactly-what-it-says title="Permalink to The Birthright Citizenship Clause Means Exactly What It Says: The Textual and Historical Implausibility of Alternative Interpretations Offered by the Trump Administration and Conservative Commentators such as Randy Barnett, Ilan Wurman, Chuck Cooper and Pete Patterson"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to The Birthright Citizenship Clause Means Exactly What It Says: The Textual and Historical Implausibility of Alternative Interpretations Offered by the Trump Administration and Conservative Commentators such as Randy Barnett, Ilan Wurman, Chuck Cooper and Pete Patterson</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/shutterstock_458703112.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="The Birthright Citizenship Clause Means Exactly What It Says: The Textual and Historical Implausibility of Alternative Interpretations Offered by the Trump Administration and Conservative Commentators such as Randy Barnett, Ilan Wurman, Chuck Cooper and Pete Patterson"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/10/the-birthright-citizenship-clause-means-exactly-what-it-says title="Permalink to The Birthright Citizenship Clause Means Exactly What It Says: The Textual and Historical Implausibility of Alternative Interpretations Offered by the Trump Administration and Conservative Commentators such as Randy Barnett, Ilan Wurman, Chuck Cooper and Pete Patterson" rel=bookmark> The Birthright Citizenship Clause Means Exactly What It Says: <span class=subtitle>The Textual and Historical Implausibility of Alternative Interpretations Offered by the Trump Administration and Conservative Commentators such as Randy Barnett, Ilan Wurman, Chuck Cooper and Pete Patterson</span> </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-10T04:01:52-04:00 class="post-date published">10 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/amar class="url fn author-amar author-10 post-author-link" rel=author>Vikram David Amar</a> and <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/mazzone class="url fn author-mazzone author-142 post-author-link" rel=author>Jason Mazzone</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>UC Davis Law professor Vikram David Amar and Illinois Law professor Jason Mazzone discuss the scope and original intent of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause, particularly in response to a recent executive order issued by President Trump that seeks to limit birthright citizenship. Professors Amar and Mazzone argue that the executive order (and the few legal scholars who endorse its legal basis) misinterprets the Constitution by imposing parental status requirements that are not present in the text, and they explain that both historical and legal precedent overwhelmingly support the conventional interpretation that all persons born on U.S. soil and subject to its laws are citizens.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/10/the-birthright-citizenship-clause-means-exactly-what-it-says title="Continue Reading The Birthright Citizenship Clause Means Exactly What It Says: The Textual and Historical Implausibility of Alternative Interpretations Offered by the Trump Administration and Conservative Commentators such as Randy Barnett, Ilan Wurman, Chuck Cooper and Pete Patterson">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/constitutional-law title="View all posts in Constitutional Law">Constitutional Law</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28362><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/07/professor-alan-dershowitzs-ill-considered-defense-of-the-quid-pro-quo-in-the-eric-adams-prosecution title="Permalink to Professor Alan Dershowitz’s Ill-Considered Defense of the Quid Pro Quo in the Eric Adams Prosecution"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Professor Alan Dershowitz’s Ill-Considered Defense of the Quid Pro Quo in the Eric Adams Prosecution</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/shutterstock_2176090549.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Professor Alan Dershowitz’s Ill-Considered Defense of the Quid Pro Quo in the Eric Adams Prosecution"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/07/professor-alan-dershowitzs-ill-considered-defense-of-the-quid-pro-quo-in-the-eric-adams-prosecution title="Permalink to Professor Alan Dershowitz’s Ill-Considered Defense of the Quid Pro Quo in the Eric Adams Prosecution" rel=bookmark> Professor Alan Dershowitz’s Ill-Considered Defense of the Quid Pro Quo in the Eric Adams Prosecution </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-07T05:01:07-05:00 class="post-date published">7 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/may class="url fn author-may author-203 post-author-link" rel=author>Jon May</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Criminal defense attorney Jon May critiques Professor Alan Dershowitz’s defense of the Department of Justice’s decision to dismiss criminal charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams and argues that the deal is unlike typical plea bargains in federal criminal cases. Mr. May contends that Adams’s agreement, which involves no criminal penalty, dangerously expands the scope of prosecutorial discretion and could lead to a system where defendants barter extrajudicial favors to avoid prosecution, undermining principles of justice.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/07/professor-alan-dershowitzs-ill-considered-defense-of-the-quid-pro-quo-in-the-eric-adams-prosecution title="Continue Reading Professor Alan Dershowitz’s Ill-Considered Defense of the Quid Pro Quo in the Eric Adams Prosecution">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/constitutional-law/criminal-procedure title="View all posts in Criminal Procedure">Criminal Procedure</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28364><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/07/do-state-legislatures-have-to-obey-u-s-supreme-court-decisions title="Permalink to Do State Legislatures Have to Obey U.S. Supreme Court Decisions?"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Do State Legislatures Have to Obey U.S. Supreme Court Decisions?</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/shutterstock_654050020.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Do State Legislatures Have to Obey U.S. Supreme Court Decisions?"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/07/do-state-legislatures-have-to-obey-u-s-supreme-court-decisions title="Permalink to Do State Legislatures Have to Obey U.S. Supreme Court Decisions?" rel=bookmark> Do State Legislatures Have to Obey U.S. Supreme Court Decisions? </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-07T05:00:57-05:00 class="post-date published">7 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat class="url fn author-sarat author-156 post-author-link" rel=author>Austin Sarat</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Amherst professor Austin Sarat discusses how several state legislatures, particularly Alabama, are passing laws allowing the death penalty for child rape despite a 2008 Supreme Court ruling, <em>Kennedy v. Louisiana</em>, that declared such punishment unconstitutional. Professor Sarat argues that this strategic legislative defiance represents a dangerous trend that threatens constitutional order, as lawmakers are deliberately passing unconstitutional laws hoping the current conservative-majority Supreme Court will overturn precedent, similar to the strategy that led to <em>Roe v. Wade</em> being overturned.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/07/do-state-legislatures-have-to-obey-u-s-supreme-court-decisions title="Continue Reading Do State Legislatures Have to Obey U.S. Supreme Court Decisions?">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/constitutional-law title="View all posts in Constitutional Law">Constitutional Law</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28358><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/06/bribery-enters-its-golden-age title="Permalink to Bribery Enters its Golden Age"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Bribery Enters its Golden Age</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_2581689079.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Bribery Enters its Golden Age"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/06/bribery-enters-its-golden-age title="Permalink to Bribery Enters its Golden Age" rel=bookmark> Bribery Enters its Golden Age </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-06T05:01:21-05:00 class="post-date published">6 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/sample class="url fn author-sample author-237 post-author-link" rel=author>James Sample</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Hofstra Law professor James Sample examines President Donald Trump’s conduct that facilitates corruption, particularly the launch of a cryptocurrency scheme and the broader erosion of anti-corruption safeguards, including weakened bribery laws, de-prioritized enforcement of foreign influence regulations, and the dismissal of government watchdogs. Professor Sample argues that these actions, along with Supreme Court rulings limiting bribery prosecutions, have systemically undermined the rule of law, fostering an environment where public officials can engage in transactional governance that threatens democracy itself.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/06/bribery-enters-its-golden-age title="Continue Reading Bribery Enters its Golden Age">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/politics title="View all posts in Politics">Politics</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28354><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/06/jesus-wept-we-should-weep-too title="Permalink to Jesus Wept: We Should Weep Too"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to Jesus Wept: We Should Weep Too</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/shutterstock_3861493.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="Jesus Wept: We Should Weep Too"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/06/jesus-wept-we-should-weep-too title="Permalink to Jesus Wept: We Should Weep Too" rel=bookmark> <em>Jesus Wept</em>: We Should Weep Too </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-06T05:01:06-05:00 class="post-date published">6 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/griffin class="url fn author-griffin author-103 post-author-link" rel=author>Leslie C. Griffin</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>UNLV Boyd School of Law professor Leslie C. Griffin discusses the long history of child sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church and the role of various popes in either ignoring or covering up allegations against clergy, drawing from investigative journalist Philip Shenon’s book on the topic. Professor Griffin argues that successive popes—Pius XII through Francis—failed to take meaningful action against abusers, instead prioritizing the protection of the Church’s reputation, and she suggests that the election of the next pope will determine whether real change ever occurs.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/06/jesus-wept-we-should-weep-too title="Continue Reading Jesus Wept: We Should Weep Too">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/book-reviews title="View all posts in Book Reviews">Book Reviews</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><article class="entry listing-post" id=post-28346><div class=inner-wrapper><header><div class=featured-image> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/05/a-constitutional-law-casebook-symposium-in-an-era-of-constitutional-upheaval title="Permalink to A Constitutional Law Casebook Symposium in an Era of Constitutional Upheaval"><span class=visuallyhidden>Permalink to A Constitutional Law Casebook Symposium in an Era of Constitutional Upheaval</span><img src="https://i0.wp.com/verdict.justia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/shutterstock_243773131.jpg?quality=90&resize=426%2C350&strip=all&fit=1000%25&ssl=1" width=426 height=350 alt="A Constitutional Law Casebook Symposium in an Era of Constitutional Upheaval"></a></div><strong class="heading-4 entry-title"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/05/a-constitutional-law-casebook-symposium-in-an-era-of-constitutional-upheaval title="Permalink to A Constitutional Law Casebook Symposium in an Era of Constitutional Upheaval" rel=bookmark> A Constitutional Law Casebook Symposium in an Era of Constitutional Upheaval </a> </strong><div class=published-date> <span class=published-date-label></span> <time datetime=2025-03-05T05:01:06-05:00 class="post-date published">5 Mar 2025 </time></div><div class="author vcard"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/dorf class="url fn author-dorf author-17 post-author-link" rel=author>Michael C. Dorf</a></div></header><div class=content><div class=entry-content><p>Cornell Law professor Michael C. Dorf discusses a recent symposium on constitutional law casebooks, highlighting the challenges of teaching constitutional law at a time when the Trump administration and the Supreme Court are reshaping legal precedents. Professor Dorf argues that while these changes present difficulties, it remains essential to teach established legal principles and encourage students to critically engage with unresolved legal questions, including, in some cases, through the use of rhetorical questions in casebooks.</p></div></div><footer><div class=read_more_link> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/2025/03/05/a-constitutional-law-casebook-symposium-in-an-era-of-constitutional-upheaval title="Continue Reading A Constitutional Law Casebook Symposium in an Era of Constitutional Upheaval">Continue reading</a></div><div class=category-list><span class=category-list-label>Posted in:</span> <span class=category-list-items> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/category/constitutional-law title="View all posts in Constitutional Law">Constitutional Law</a> </span></div></footer></div></article><div class=navigation><ol class="wp-paginate arrows-nav"> <li class="page current"> <span class=txt>1</span> </li> <li class=page><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/page/2 title=2><span class=txt>2</span></a></li> <li class=page><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/page/3 title=3><span class=txt>3</span></a></li> <li class=page><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/page/4 title=4><span class=txt>4</span></a></li> <li class=page><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/page/5 title=5><span class=txt>5</span></a></li> <li class="page gap"><span class=txt>...</span></li> <li class="page next page-button -arrow"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/page/2> <span class=txt>Older</span> <svg class=vicon> <use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#line-arrow></use> </svg> </a> </li> <li class="page last page-button -arrow"> <a href=https://verdict.justia.com/page/158 title=158> <span class=txt>Oldest</span> <svg class=vicon> <use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#line-arrow-double></use> </svg> </a> </li></ol></div></div></section></div></div><div id=meet-columnists class="widget stripes-widget widget_text"><strong class="heading-4 widget-title stripes-widget-title">Meet our Columnists</strong><div class="content widget-content stripes-widget-content"><div class="columnist-main-wrap columnist-list"><div class="col col-1"><div class="minibio columnist columnist-10"><div class=author-image><a title="Vikram David Amar" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/amar><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/amar.jpg alt="Vikram David Amar" title="Vikram David Amar" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/amar class=author-name>Vikram David Amar</a><p class=author-description><span> Vikram David Amar is a Distinguished Professor of Law at UC Davis School of Law and a Professor... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/amar>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div><div class="minibio columnist columnist-16"><div class=author-image><a title="Neil H. Buchanan" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/buchanan><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/buchanan.jpg alt="Neil H. Buchanan" title="Neil H. Buchanan" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/buchanan class=author-name>Neil H. Buchanan</a><p class=author-description><span> Neil H. Buchanan, an economist and legal scholar, is a visiting professor at the University of... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/buchanan>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div><div class="minibio columnist columnist-9"><div class=author-image><a title="John Dean" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/dean><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/dean.jpg alt="John Dean" title="John Dean" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/dean class=author-name>John Dean</a><p class=author-description><span> John Dean served as Counsel to the President of the United States from July 1970 to April 1973.... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/dean>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div><div class="minibio columnist columnist-17"><div class=author-image><a title="Michael C. Dorf" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/dorf><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/dorf.jpg alt="Michael C. Dorf" title="Michael C. Dorf" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/dorf class=author-name>Michael C. Dorf</a><p class=author-description><span> Michael C. Dorf is the Robert S. Stevens Professor of Law at Cornell University Law School. He... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/dorf>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div></div><div class="col col-2"><div class="minibio columnist columnist-145"><div class=author-image><a title="Samuel Estreicher" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/estreicher><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/estreicher.jpg alt="Samuel Estreicher" title="Samuel Estreicher" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/estreicher class=author-name>Samuel Estreicher</a><p class=author-description><span> Samuel Estreicher is Dwight D. Opperman Professor of Law and Director of the Center of Labor and... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/estreicher>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div><div class="minibio columnist columnist-103"><div class=author-image><a title="Leslie C. Griffin" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/griffin><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/griffin.jpg alt="Leslie C. Griffin" title="Leslie C. Griffin" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/griffin class=author-name>Leslie C. Griffin</a><p class=author-description><span> Dr. Leslie C. Griffin is the William S. Boyd Professor of Law at the University of Nevada, Las... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/griffin>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div><div class="minibio columnist columnist-13"><div class=author-image><a title="Joanna L. Grossman" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/grossman><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/grossman.jpg alt="Joanna L. Grossman" title="Joanna L. Grossman" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/grossman class=author-name>Joanna L. Grossman</a><p class=author-description><span> Joanna L. Grossman is the Ellen K. Solender Endowed Chair in Women and Law at SMU Dedman School... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/grossman>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div><div class="minibio columnist columnist-12"><div class=author-image><a title="Marci A. Hamilton" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/hamilton><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/hamilton.jpg alt="Marci A. Hamilton" title="Marci A. Hamilton" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/hamilton class=author-name>Marci A. Hamilton</a><p class=author-description><span> Professor Marci A. Hamilton is a Professor of Practice in Political Science at the University of... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/hamilton>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div></div><div class="col col-3"><div class="minibio columnist columnist-95"><div class=author-image><a title="Joseph Margulies" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/margulies><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/margulies.jpg alt="Joseph Margulies" title="Joseph Margulies" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/margulies class=author-name>Joseph Margulies</a><p class=author-description><span> Mr. Margulies is a Professor of Government at Cornell University. He was Counsel of Record in... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/margulies>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div><div class="minibio columnist columnist-156"><div class=author-image><a title="Austin Sarat" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/sarat.jpg alt="Austin Sarat" title="Austin Sarat" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat class=author-name>Austin Sarat</a><p class=author-description><span> Austin Sarat is the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science at... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/sarat>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div><div class="minibio columnist columnist-179"><div class=author-image><a title="Laurence H. Tribe" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/tribe><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/tribe.jpg alt="Laurence H. Tribe" title="Laurence H. Tribe" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/tribe class=author-name>Laurence H. Tribe</a><p class=author-description><span> Laurence H. Tribe is the Carl M. Loeb University Professor Emeritus at Harvard University and... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/tribe>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div><div class="minibio columnist columnist-133"><div class=author-image><a title="Lesley Wexler" href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/wexler><img src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/authors/mini/wexler.jpg alt="Lesley Wexler" title="Lesley Wexler" class="avatar avatar-custom avatar-mini" width=80 height=80></a></div><div class=author-info><a href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/wexler class=author-name>Lesley Wexler</a><p class=author-description><span> Lesley Wexler is a Professor of Law at the University of Illinois College of Law. Immediately... </span><a class=author-more-info href=https://verdict.justia.com/author/wexler>more <svg class="vicon -xtiny"><use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/icons/icon-sprite.svg?x61647#arrow-right></use></svg></a></p></div></div></div></div></div></div><div id=columnist-publications class="widget stripes-widget widget_text"> <strong class="heading-4 widget-title stripes-widget-title">Columnist Publications</strong><div class="content widget-content stripes-widget-content"><div class=books-list><div class=inner-wrap data-directive=j-carousel><div class="book book-1"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/052188621X?tag=marcahamicomm-20" title="Justice Denied What America Must Do to Protect Its Children" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by Marci A. Hamilton" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/justice-denied-what-ameri.jpg title="Justice Denied What America Must Do to Protect Its Children" alt="Justice Denied What America Must Do to Protect Its Children" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-2"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1599414511?tag=" title="Constitutional Law, Cases and Materials (University Casebooks)" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by Jonathan D. Varat, William Cohen and Vikram David Amar" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/constitutional-law-cases.jpg title="Constitutional Law, Cases and Materials (University Casebooks)" alt="Constitutional Law, Cases and Materials (University Casebooks)" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-3"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/161163718X?tag=verdjoangros-20" title="Family Law in New York" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="Edited by Barbara Stark and Joanna L. Grossman" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/family-law-in-new-york.jpg title="Family Law in New York" alt="Family Law in New York" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-4"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/110745655X?tag=marcahamicomm-20" title="God vs. the Gavel The Perils of Extreme Religious Liberty" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by Marci A. Hamilton" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/god-vs-the-gavel-the-peri.jpg title="God vs. the Gavel The Perils of Extreme Religious Liberty" alt="God vs. the Gavel The Perils of Extreme Religious Liberty" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-5"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0521766478?tag=verdjoangros-20" title="Gender Equality Dimensions of Women's Equal Citizenship" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="Edited by Linda C. McClain and Joanna L. Grossman" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/gender-equality-dimension.jpg title="Gender Equality Dimensions of Women's Equal Citizenship" alt="Gender Equality Dimensions of Women's Equal Citizenship" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-6"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0691149828?tag=verdjoangros-20" title="Inside the Castle: Law and the Family in 20th Century America" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by Joanna L. Grossman and Lawrence M. Friedman" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/inside-the-castle-law-and.jpg title="Inside the Castle: Law and the Family in 20th Century America" alt="Inside the Castle: Law and the Family in 20th Century America" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-7"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1599416182?tag=" title="Constitutional Law Concise Edition (University Casebooks)" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by Jonathan D. Varat, William Cohen and Vikram David Amar" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/constitutional-law-concis.jpg title="Constitutional Law Concise Edition (University Casebooks)" alt="Constitutional Law Concise Edition (University Casebooks)" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-8"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1591026326?tag=" title="The First Amendment: Freedom of Speech: Its Constitutional History and the Contemporary Debate" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="Edited by Vikram David Amar" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/the-first-amendment-freed.jpg title="The First Amendment: Freedom of Speech: Its Constitutional History and the Contemporary Debate" alt="The First Amendment: Freedom of Speech: Its Constitutional History and the Contemporary Debate" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-9"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1403977410?tag=" title="Pure Goldwater" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by John W. Dean and Barry M. Goldwater" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/pure-goldwater.jpg title="Pure Goldwater" alt="Pure Goldwater" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-10"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0805069569?tag=" title="Warren G. Harding (The American Presidents Series)" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by John W. Dean" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/warren-g-harding-the-amer.jpg title="Warren G. Harding (The American Presidents Series)" alt="Warren G. Harding (The American Presidents Series)" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-11"> <a class=wrp-bk href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/1504041011?tag=" title="Blind Ambition: The White House Years" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by John W. Dean" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/the-white-house-years.jpg title="Blind Ambition: The White House Years" alt="Blind Ambition: The White House Years" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-12"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EZSM6KK?tag=" title="The Debt Ceiling Disasters: How the Republicans Created an Unnecessary Constitutional Crisis and How the Democrats Can Fight Back" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by Neil H. Buchanan" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/the-debt-ceiling-disaster.jpg title="The Debt Ceiling Disasters: How the Republicans Created an Unnecessary Constitutional Crisis and How the Democrats Can Fight Back" alt="The Debt Ceiling Disasters: How the Republicans Created an Unnecessary Constitutional Crisis and How the Democrats Can Fight Back" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-13"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0143038869?tag=" title="Conservatives Without Conscience" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by John W. Dean" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/conservatives-without-con.jpg title="Conservatives Without Conscience" alt="Conservatives Without Conscience" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-14"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/031600023X?tag=" title="Worse Than Watergate: The Secret Presidency of George W. Bush" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by John W. Dean" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/worse-than-watergate-the.jpg title="Worse Than Watergate: The Secret Presidency of George W. Bush" alt="Worse Than Watergate: The Secret Presidency of George W. Bush" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-15"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0670025364?tag=" title="The Nixon Defense: What He Knew and When He Knew It" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by John W. Dean" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/the-nixon-defense-what-he.jpg title="The Nixon Defense: What He Knew and When He Knew It" alt="The Nixon Defense: What He Knew and When He Knew It" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-16"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0743226070?tag=" title="The Rehnquist Choice: The Untold Story of the Nixon Appointment That Redefined the Supreme Court" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by John W. Dean" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/the-rehnquist-choice-the.jpg title="The Rehnquist Choice: The Untold Story of the Nixon Appointment That Redefined the Supreme Court" alt="The Rehnquist Choice: The Untold Story of the Nixon Appointment That Redefined the Supreme Court" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-17"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0230110630?tag=marcahamicomm-20" title="Fundamentalism, Politics, and the Law" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by Marci A. Hamilton and Mark J. Rozell" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/fundamentalism-politics-a.jpg title="Fundamentalism, Politics, and the Law" alt="Fundamentalism, Politics, and the Law" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-18"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1454817658?tag=verdjoangros-20" title="Gender &amp; Law: Theory Doctrine &amp; Commentary, Sixth Edition" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by Katherine T. Bartlett, Deborah L. Rhode, and Joanna L. Grossman" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/gender-law-theory-doctrin.jpg title="Gender &amp; Law: Theory Doctrine &amp; Commentary, Sixth Edition" alt="Gender &amp; Law: Theory Doctrine &amp; Commentary, Sixth Edition" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-19"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0143114212?tag=" title="Broken Government: How Republican Rule Destroyed the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Branches" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by John W. Dean" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/broken-government-how-rep.jpg title="Broken Government: How Republican Rule Destroyed the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Branches" alt="Broken Government: How Republican Rule Destroyed the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Branches" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-20"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1590563840?tag=jusvershefcol-20" title="Mind if I Order the Cheeseburger?: And Other Questions People Ask Vegans" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by Sherry F. Colb" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/mind-if-i-order-the-chees.jpg title="Mind if I Order the Cheeseburger?: And Other Questions People Ask Vegans" alt="Mind if I Order the Cheeseburger?: And Other Questions People Ask Vegans" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-21"> <a class=wrp-bk href=https://www.audible.com/pd/Mind-If-I-Order-the-Cheeseburger-And-Other-Questions-People-Ask-Vegans-Audiobook/B07K1NJQPQ title="Mind if I Order the Cheeseburger?: And Other Questions People Ask Vegans" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by Sherry F. Colb" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/mind-if-i-order-the-chees-audio.jpg title="Mind if I Order the Cheeseburger?: And Other Questions People Ask Vegans" alt="Mind if I Order the Cheeseburger?: And Other Questions People Ask Vegans" width=158 height=238></a></div><div class="book book-22"> <a class=wrp-bk href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/1107589827?tag=" title="Nine to Five: How Gender, Sex, and Sexuality Continue to Define the American Workplace" target=_blank rel=nofollow> <img data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-action=Outbound data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-label="Verdict - Book" class="book-cover owl-lazy" data-author="by Joanna L. Grossman" data-src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/images/books/placeholder.jpg title="Nine to Five: How Gender, Sex, and Sexuality Continue to Define the American Workplace" alt="Nine to Five: How Gender, Sex, and Sexuality Continue to Define the American Workplace" width=158 height=238></a></div></div></div></div></div><div id=footer><div class="fcontainer layout-max-limit"><div id=justia-logo-footer class=justia-logo><div class=logo-wrap> <a href=https://www.justia.com/ title=Justia class=logo-link> <span class=visuallyhidden>Justia Verdict</span> <svg class=logo-svg> <use xmlns:xlink=http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink xlink:href=https://verdict.justia.com/justatic/verdict/images/logo/logo-sprite.svg?x61647#justia> </use> </svg> </a></div></div><div class=disclaimer> The opinions expressed in Verdict are those of the individual columnists and do not represent the opinions of Justia.</div><nav id=footernav><ul id=menu-footernav class=footer-menu> <li class="menu-item menu-item--justia"> <a href=https://www.justia.com/ > <span data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-action="Footer Navigation" data-gtm-label=Justia class=-txt> Justia </span> </a> </li> <li class="menu-item menu-item--company"> <a href=http://company.justia.com/ > <span data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-action="Footer Navigation" data-gtm-label=Company class=-txt> Company </span> </a> </li> <li class="menu-item menu-item--terms"> <a href=https://www.justia.com/terms-of-service/ > <span data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-action="Footer Navigation" data-gtm-label="Terms of Service" class=-txt> Terms of Service </span> </a> </li> <li class="menu-item menu-item--policy"> <a href=https://www.justia.com/privacy-policy/ > <span data-gtm-type=click data-gtm-category=Navigation data-gtm-action="Footer Navigation" data-gtm-label="Privacy Policy" class=-txt> Privacy Policy </span> </a> </li></ul></nav><div class=copyright title="Copyright © Justia"> <span class=copyright_label> © </span> <span class=copyright_year> 2025 </span> <span> Justia </span></div></div></div></div></div> <script src=https://justatic.com/v/20250321b/verdict/js/core.js></script> <link rel=stylesheet id=jetpack_css-css href='https://verdict.justia.com/wp-content/plugins/jetpack/css/jetpack.css?x61647' type=text/css media=all></body></html>