Law and Chaos

DOCKET ALERTS:Joe Dye begins a series on the second phase of the redistricting wars at his Substack. Multiple states are threatening to tax payouts from Trump’s slush fund at 100 percent. The Trump Administration is suing Massachusetts for failing to give “confidential,” hard to trace license plates to ICE and CBP.A panel of federal judges in Alabama once again rejected the state’s congressional map as an illegal racial gerrymander. The state has appealed to SCOTUS.Don Lemon moved to unseal the grand jury transcript in the Cities Church protest prosecution. He cited the recently unsealed magistrate’s docket, showing the government’s wild overreach — not to mention incompetence — in its warrant applications, along with the many cases where courts have said the DOJ is currently lawless and entitled to no presumption of regularity.The New York Times had a wild story this week about the Justice Department’s total loss of credibility with grand juries, including in Wyoming, where the US Attorney’s total violation of grand jury rules led to the dismissal of nine indictments.MAIN SHOW:The US Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois is reportedly investigating E. Jean Carroll for perjury. In a deposition in 2022, Carroll misspoke and said that her litigation was not being funded by anyone else. She later corrected the record to say that some of her fees were being paid by a nonprofit associated with LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman. The government is trying to do to that nonprofit what it’s done to the Southern Poverty Law Center, alleging that it somehow conspired to hide its activities by getting Carroll to lie under oath.Meanwhile, the SPLC is moving to dismiss its case based on vindictive prosecution. Luckily it has eleventy-seven clips of Trump officials declaring that they’re on a revenge mission to take out the civil rights organization.In non-political news, a drag queen named Pattie Gonia is in a trademark dispute with the brand Patagonia. SUBSCRIBER BONUS:Trump is making NDAs great again.How Democrats Can Take Back the Redistricting Wars Pt. 1https://josephdye.substack.com/p/how-democrats-can-take-back-the-redistrictingUS v. Massachusetts [Confidential License Plates]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73400637/united-states-v-the-commonwealth-of-massachusetts/Milligan v. Allenhttps://www.courtlistener.com/docket/61494291/milligan-v-allenUS v. Levy-Armstrong [Cities Church/Don Lemon]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72212459/united-states-v-levy-armstrong/In re Search Warrant [Cities Church/Don Lemon magistrate docket]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72323660/in-re-search-warrant/As Trump Politicizes Justice Dept., Prosecutors Struggle With Grand Jurieshttps://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/26/us/politics/trump-justice-department-grand-juries.htmlDOJ probes Democratic-allied nonprofit that helped fund E. Jean Carroll’s legal billshttps://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/05/28/doj-probes-reid-hoffmans-nonprofit-funding-e-jean-carrolls-legal-bills/US v. Southern Poverty Law Center [docket via CourtListener]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73223865/united-states-v-southern-poverty-law-center-inc/Patagonia, Inc. v. Entrepreneur Enterprises, Inc. (“Patty Gonia”) [docket via CourtListener]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72169060/patagonia-inc-v-entrepreneur-enterprises-inc/Pattie Gonia Instagram responding to lawsuithttps://www.instagram.com/p/DY2L725tVow/Show Links:https://www.lawandchaospod.com/BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPodThreads: @LawAndChaosPodTwitter: @LawAndChaosPodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Congressional Republicans abstain courteously from blessing Trump’s ICE/CBP allocation after Trump torpedoes several sitting GOP politicians and demands cash for the ballroom and the $1.8 billion J6 slush fund. They’re heading home until June, TYVM.DOJ indicts former Cuban leader Raúl Castro, age 94, for shooting down two flights of dissident exiles dropping leaflets back in 1996. Is this a prelude to Bay of Pigs 2?Officials in Florida and Tennessee discover that the First Amendment applies to everyone, even people who criticize Charlie Kirk. Good thing it’s taxpayers picking up the tab for this little life lesson!And Acting AG Todd Blanche adds a codicil to the slush fund settlement granting amnesty to Trump and his kids for past tax crimes — but not future ones! (Don’t believe everything you read on the internet.)DOOFUS OF THE DAY: Todd Blanche.MAIN SHOW:Judge Leo Sorokin in Massachusetts sanctions ICE for lying to the court about the time an immigrant detainee left the jurisdiction. This one will make you mad!And the indictment against the “Broadview 6” for protesting outside an ICE detention center implodes after the grand jury transcripts reveal a dumpsterfire of impropriety and potentially sanctionable misconduct by the prosecution. Read this hearing transcript — but not after taking a giant swig of milk!SUBSCRIBER BONUS:Meet the new tariffs! Same as the old tariffs! (Illegal.) And NO the administration can’t keep collecting them right now because they’re too busy trying to figure out how to refund the last batch of illegal tariffs to figure it out.US v. Perez-Perez [Raul Castro indictment]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/31009891/united-states-v-perez-perez/Civil Rights Lawyers Secure $485,000 Settlement for FWC Biologist Fired Over Charlie Kirk Social Media Posthttps://www.aclufl.org/press-releases/civil-rights-lawyers-secure-485000-settlement-for-fwc-biologist-fired-over-charlie-kirk-social-media-post/He Was Jailed Over a Charlie Kirk Post. The Sheriff Now Owes Him $835,000.https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/20/us/larry-bushart-charlie-kirk-facebook-settlement.htmlSlush Fund Codicilhttps://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1441216/dlGuevara Peruano v. Wesling [ICE Sanctions]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72181340/guevara-peruano-v-wesling/Oregon v. Trump [Tarriffs]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72368522/the-state-of-oregon-v-trump/Broadview 6 May 21 Hearinghttps://cst.brightspotcdn.com/95/75/a403b7674c31b8f5bb0ecae58921/25cr693-usa-v-rabbitt-052126.pdfUS v. Rabbit [Broadview 6]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71795281/parties/united-states-v-rabbitt/Show Links:https://www.lawandchaospod.com/BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPodThreads: @LawAndChaosPodTwitter: @LawAndChaosPodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

As Trump rants at “Neil and Amy” for betraying him in the IEEPA tariffs case, the next tariff battle is already taking shape.Reuters legal reporters analyzed court stats in Minnesota and proved that federal prosecutions cratered during the immigration surge. So much for “cleaning up” crime.Doofus of the Day: Pete Hegseth, who is vowing to put Senator Mark Kelly in jail … again.Judge Melissa Dubose referred the head of the Civil Division at the US Attorney’s Office for Rhode Island for possible sanctions due to lack of candor. Chief Judge John McConnell appointed a special counsel to review.Justice Alito extended the stay in the mifepristone case until Thursday.MAIN SHOW:The Virginia Supreme Court struck down the Democratic gerrymander on a technicality. Now the state’s legislators have filed a longshot emergency application for stay at the Supreme Court.And FCC Chair Brendan Carr is lying about the equal time rule as an excuse to go after the ladies at The View. Oregon v. Trump [Tariffs]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72368522/the-state-of-oregon-v-trumpTrump vowed to fight crime in Minneapolis. Prosecutions plungedhttps://www.reuters.com/world/americas/how-trumps-minneapolis-immigration-blitz-hobbled-federal-crime-fighting-2026-05-07/Gomez v. Nessinger [Rhode Island Attorney Sanctions]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73235898/gomez-v-nessinger/Mifepristone SCOTUS Dockethttps://www.supremecourt.gov/search.aspx?filename=/docket/docketfiles/html/public/25a1208.htmlScott v. McDougle (Virginia Supreme Court)https://www.vacourts.gov/static/opinions/opnscvwp/1260127.pdfScott v. McDougle [US Supreme Court petition for stay]https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/25/25A1240/408563/20260511151941216_25A%20Application%20for%20Stay.pdfFCC Petition by KTRK-TV (The View)https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/10507899614175/1FCC Chair Brandon Carr letter (DA 26-68)https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-26-68A1.pdfShow Links:https://www.lawandchaospod.com/BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPodThreads: @LawAndChaosPodTwitter: @LawAndChaosPodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A federal judge in Maryland issued a TRO blocking the construction of an ICE detention facility without first undertaking the legally required environmental impact assessment.The Trump administration filed an “emergency” petition to the Supreme Court demanding that it be allowed to immediately deport 350,000 Haitians who have enjoyed Temporary Protected Status for decades. It insists an earlier shadow docket ruling allowing it to deport Venezuelan TPS holders is precedential. An amicus brief from 175 former judges points out that shadow docket orders are definitionally non-precedential.The USDA is teaming up with Robert Kennedy and his team of freaks at Health and Human Services to Make America Healthy Again … by shaming poor people for their food choices. SNAP recipients sued in DC to block a “pilot” program to allow states to restrict food benefits to exclude sugary foods.MAIN SHOW:DOGE destroyed the National Endowment for the Humanities in three weeks last spring. We wrote about it on the blog, and discussed the ongoing litigation. Turns out, the DOGE dudes are pissed that the plaintiffs released video of them smirking their way through depositions.On Monday, in the middle of trial, the Trump administration tried to blow up the antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation, the parent company of Ticketmaster. This leaves the 40 states which joined the suit as co-plaintiffs in the lurch. Judge Arun Subramanian has ordered the parties to huddle up and see if they can’t negotiate a settlement. Will the case go forward next week without the lead plaintiff?And Andrew has an extended exploration of Trump’s plan to use a little known federal agency called the United States International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to get oil tankers to cross the Strait of Hormuz. The DFC has released a plan (or at least, concepts of a plan) to reinsure insurance companies that issue war riders. Which might help if insurance companies were refusing to issue policies to ships at sea – except that insurance companies are still underwriting as many marine policies as ever. It’s just that it costs more now, because of the war.Plus for subscribers, we’ll break down the bar complaint against fan favorite Ed Martin.Kash Patel Confirms UFC Fighters Will Train FBI Agents This Week, Calling It A “Historic Opportunity”https://deadline.com/2026/03/kash-patel-ufc-fighters-train-fbi-agents-1236750897/State of Maryland v. Noem [ICE Detention Center in Hagerstown]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72313096/state-of-maryland-v-noemLesly Miot v. Trump [Haitian TPS, Trial Docket]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/70965949/lesly-miot-v-trump/Trump v. Miot [SCOTUS Docket]https://www.supremecourt.gov/search.aspx?filename=/docket/docketfiles/html/public/25a999.htmlDOGE Bros Had More Fun Burning Down Government Than Testifying About Ithttps://www.lawandchaospod.com/p/doge-bros-had-more-fun-burning-downAuthors Guild v. National Endowment for the Humanitieshttps://www.courtlistener.com/docket/70243086/the-authors-guild-v-national-endowment-for-the-humanitiesAmicus Brief of 175 Former Judges re Precedent of Shadow Docket Rulingshttps://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/25/25A952/400077/20260305142419318_Amicus%20Brief%20of%20Former%20Judges%20re%20Dahlia%20Doe_FINAL.pdfAragon v. Rollins [SNAP Benefits]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72419889/aragon-v-rollins/DOJ nopes out of Ticketmaster antitrust suithttps://www.publicnotice.co/p/ticketmaster-suit-dojUS v. Live Nationhttps://www.courtlistener.com/docket/68557723/united-states-of-america-v-live-nation-entertainment-incTrump’s ‘free flow of energy’ vow fails to restart shipping in strait of Hormuz [The Guardian]https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/10/trump-free-flow-energy-fails-restart-shipping-strait-hormuzDFC Reinsurance announcement [US International Development Finance Corporation]https://www.dfc.gov/media/press-releases/dfc-announces-chubb-lead-insurance-partner-maritime-reinsurance-planGulf war risk premiums topping double-digit millions of dollars per trip [Lloyd’s List]https://www.lloydslist.com/LL1156586/Gulf-war-risk-premiums-topping-double-digit-millions-of-dollars-per-tripNo, P&I clubs have not ‘cancelled war risk cover’ [Lloyd’s List]https://www.lloydslist.com/LL1156515/No-PI-clubs-have-not-cancelled-war-risk-coverShow Links:https://www.lawandchaospod.com/BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPodThreads: @LawAndChaosPodTwitter: @LawAndChaosPodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Law and Chaos wishes a big mazal tov to Kristi Noem on her new, very real job as assistant principal of the Yeehaw American Hegemony Club. And to Lindsey Halligan on catching a Florida Bar investigation.We’ll discuss our recent post on Pam Bondi’s very timely announcement that she intends to take over state bar complaints against DOJ employees. It comes at a moment when district court judges are telegraphing very clearly that they are going to start holding DHS and DOJ in criminal contempt for rampant disregard of court orders. Specifically, Judge Michael Farbiarz of the District of New Jersey says he’ll require sworn affidavits from officials at the US Attorneys Office and ICE for every habeas release case that comes before him. This will likely serve as a model for other judges whose dockets are buckling under the weight of habeas cases from all the immigrants ICE is illegally detaining.Elections expert Joe Dye is back to discuss Tuesday’s primary elections in Texas, Arkansas, and North Carolina.And for subscribers, we’ll discuss the shadow docket order in which the six conservative justices leapt in to save New York Rep. Nicole Malliotakis's seat.Lindsey Halligan Is Under Investigation by the Florida Barhttps://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/05/us/politics/lindsey-halligan-investigation-florida-bar.htmlBondi Says She's The Bar Nowhttps://www.lawandchaospod.com/p/bondi-says-shes-the-bar-nowJudge Farbiarz Order re Contempthttps://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.njd.590517/gov.uscourts.njd.590517.30.0.pdfMalliotakis v. Williams [2026 Supreme Court New York redistricting decision]https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/25a914_1p24.pdfAbbott v. LULAC [2025 Supreme Court stay of Texas map]https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/25a608_7khn.pdfRucho v. Common Cause [2019 Supreme Court gerrymandering opinion]https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=6090361490276671133Steve Vladek, Bonus 214: Emergency Relief from State Courts [One First]https://www.stevevladeck.com/p/bonus-214-emergency-relief-from-stateShow Links:https://www.lawandchaospod.com/BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPodThreads: @LawAndChaosPodTwitter: @LawAndChaosPodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

DOCKET ALERTS:The Justice Department is suing New Jersey for not letting ICE use state buildings and parks for immigration enforcement. Because the Tenth Amendment is basically a suggestion?CBP agents dumped a blind, sick, refugee who spoke no English outside a doughnut shop in Buffalo because they couldn’t deport him. Local police are investigating his death.Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is trying to manhandle Anthropic into letting it use Claude for domestic surveillance and autonomous targeting. MAIN SHOW:ICE’s total refusal to follow the law has flooded federal courts with habeas corpus petitions, and judges are PISSED. On Thursday, two judges in Minnesota and one in New Jersey threatened to hold prosecutors in contempt of court over DOJ/DHS refusing to follow court orders in immigration cases.The fascinating “Quince sues UGG” antitrust lawsuit is Last Brand, Inc. v. Deckers Outdoor Corporation. The (possibly even true) story of ugh, ugly, and finally ugg boots is told here by the Everything Australian company.On Wednesday, Judge Brian Murphy ruled that the Trump administration’s policy of third-country removals was illegal.And for subscribers, we’ll discuss Pete Hegseth’s battle with Anthropic and DHS’s theft of more than 42,000 tax returns from IRS’s database.LinksUS v. New Jersey https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72316303/united-states-v-new-jersey/Nearly blind refugee found dead in New York days after immigration agents dropped him at a coffee shop alone, officials sayhttps://www.cnn.com/2026/02/26/us/shah-alam-blind-refugee-border-patrol-hnk‘Incoherent’: Hegseth’s Anthropic ultimatum confounds AI policymakers https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/26/incoherent-hegseths-anthropic-ultimatum-confounds-ai-policymakers-00800135Cartagena Hueso v. Sotohttps://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72279969/cartagena-hueso-v-soto/D.V.D. v. Dep’t of Homeland Security (D. Mass. 2025) [docket via CourtListener]https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mad.282404/gov.uscourts.mad.282404.241.0.pdfThe Surprising History of the Aussie Ugg Boothttps://everythingaustralian.com.au/blog/post/the-surprising-history-of-the-aussie-ugg-bootLast Brand, Inc. v. Deckers Outdoor Corporation (N.D. Cal. 2026) [docket via CourtListener]https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72311102/last-brand-inc-v-deckers-outdoor-corporation/Center for Taxpayer Rights v. IRShttps://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69646607/center-for-taxpayer-rights-v-internal-revenue-serviceShow Links:https://www.lawandchaospod.com/BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPodThreads: @LawAndChaosPodTwitter: @LawAndChaosPodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.