Amarica's Constitution

America gets a 250th birthday present from the Supreme Court as Chief Justice John Roberts authors an opinion for the ages in Trump v. Barbara. The Court went big and decided on the basis of the Constitution, not merely the Congressional statutes, that Abraham Lincoln's wish for the nation, birthright citizenship, which gives rise to the chance for birth equality and therefore the "new birth of freedom" Lincoln bequeathed us, will live on - and will have its best chance to endure. We look deeply into the opinion to find the great themes the Chief Justice, joined by four women, sounds. And what about the arguments made on this podcast in recent months? Can they be found in the opinion, and if so, do they strengthen it? Join us for a close look. Lawyers and Judges are eligible for Continuing Legal Education credit by visiting podcast.njsba.com after listening.

The tributes to Gordon Wood have been pouring in, and as promised, we spend this episode with him and his peerless body of work. Professor Steven Calabresi, Gordon’s neighbor, friend, and colleague, joins us, and how appropriate that is, as Steve and Akhil produced a tribute weekend at Yale Law School that reviewed and celebrated his lifetime of work. Now we remember the man, the teacher, and most of all, the towering scholar, as we review some of his most important ideas, his methods, and his inspiration for so many who have read, and who will read, the greatest books ever written about the American founding period. A giant has been lost, but his memory will be a blessing for many generations to come. CLE credit is available for lawyers and judges from podcast.njsba.com.

It’s becoming apparent that the theory that Professor Amar put forth 40 years ago in a now-famous law review article, Of Sovereignty And Federalism, is being taken seriously by more and more legislatures, newspapers, and the general public. Therefore, we bring the two leading experts on this – Professor Akhil Amar, and his brother Professor Vik Amar - together to go over the background, theory, and intricacies of this important development. It’s a master class that takes you back to an earlier master class we had, on the venerable and crucial case of McCulloch v. Maryland. What does this have to do with converse 1983? You’ll find out. CLE credit is available for lawyers and judges from podcast.njsba.com.

The look back over our five years of drama, humor, reason, and illogic continues, as perhaps the most notorious opinion of the five year period - the Trump immunity case - reappears in a clip, along with a revisit with Justice Breyer. Meanwhile, the oral argument in Wolford v. Lopez did, in fact, prompt the Professors Amar to write in SCOTUSblog.com, and we go even further here, with clips from that oral argument and answers to the justices that didn’t find their way into the record, but now, hopefully, enter the public discourse. CLE credit is available as usual for lawyers and judges from podcast.njsba.com.