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The Law Is My Ass

The legal news of the moment, from Supreme Court decisions to legislative activity, to legal issues in the public consciousness - presented and discussed by highly experienced and thoughtful attorneys, law professors, and humorists.
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Now displaying: Category: general
Jun 30, 2018

In this the final episode of the podcast with the current name (we mean it this time!) we round up the huge volume of significant Supreme Court decisions published in the last month -- and apologies in advance for the technical issues (the mics were a little hot - ooops) - we think it's still listenable. The topics we hit include (but are not limited to) the following:

  • Will the Packers be better this year (Hint: of course)
  • Who is Wisconsin's favorite Chheda? (Hint: the one named Sachin)
  • Do Gorsuch and Thomas ALWAYS agree? (Hint: apparently not!)
  • Was Kennedy a progressive jurist? (Hint: not even close)
  • Who is the new swing vote on the Supreme Court (Hint: his name rhymes with "Ron Joberts")
  • Which justice created the best read of the term? (Hint: her name rhymes with "Tonya Totomayor")
  • What's Sid been up to? (Hint: it involves a bar that sells no booze)
  • Is baking a cake "speech"? (Hint: the verdict is still out)
  • What's the more important right - to speak to to be quiet? (Hint: shhhhh!)

All that and more on the final ever episode of The Law Is My Ass, soon to become The Keep It Legal! Podcast. Apologies again for the audio, and Happy Independence Day everybody!

Dec 10, 2017

On this the 47th - and penultimate - episode of The Law Is My Ass (soon to be rebranded as the Keep it Legal!™ Podcast) - we go Sid-less (he hasn't left the podcast - he's just in England doing shows), and Joe welcomes back immigration attorney Shawn Matloob to talk about the developments in the DACA litigation and the Travel Ban 3.0 litigation, and there were a LOT! Along the way, we touch upon:

  • Can a lawyer be disbarred for disregarding a Supreme Court disbarment order? (Hint: all signs point to yes)
  • What did William Morris Agency agent Adam Venit do to Terry Crews? (Hint: it wasn't nice and he is being sued)
  • Is the President definitionally insulated from a charge of obstruction of justice? (Hint: nobody really thinks so)
  • Did Katy Perry win her real estate lawsuit in LA? (Hint: like a firework!)
  • Will sports gambling soon be legal in New Jersey (Hint: it looks promising for New Jersey)
  • Is baking a cake "speech" protected by the First Amendment? (Hint: it looks like at least 4 SCOTUS Justices think so)
  • Is the Supreme Court getting unusually involved in the pending immigration litigation? (Hint: yes)
  • Are there sexist judges on the Fourth Circuit? (Hint: Shawn and Joe are both wondering about that)
  • Are the President's tweets official proclamations of the administration? (Hint: 100%!)

All that and more - so check it out, and keep it legal!™ 

Oct 21, 2017

In this week's mercifully short (34 minutes!), guest-free, FORTY-FIRST (wow!) episode of The Law Is My Ass, Sid and Joe round up two weeks worth of Supreme Court oral arguments and Random News, and in response to a listener question, give the lowdown on how the whole process of presidential impeachment works. Along the way, they answer:

  • Do the names of show segments have more gravitas when read with an echo effect? (Hint: indubitably!)
  • Is anyone going to jail for poisoning the water in Flint, MI? (Hint: we can hope)
  • Should you tell your secrets to Equifax or Whole Foods? (Hint: if those are your only two choices, just keep your secrets to yourself)
  • Can schools punish students who don't wish to stand for the pledge of allegiance? (Hint: the courts will have to decide)
  • Did Uber commit corporate espionage? (Hint: signs point to maybe!)
  • Can municipalities regulate gun shops? (Hint: in the 9th Circuit they sure can!)
  • Does the Innocence Project do great work? (Hint: YES!)
  • Did US companies help fund Iraqi troops who targeted US forces? (Hint: Signs point to quite possibly)
  • Can Joe Arpaio have his contempt conviction vacated? (Hint: not this week!)
  • When will Trump's lawyers be richer than Trump? (Hint: about two more years)
  • Is Trump going to be impeached any time soon? (Hint: doubtful!)

And if that's not enough, you're expectations are just too high. Give it a listen, tune in next week to hear our guest, career Mediator Cathy Yanni, and in the meantime, keep it legal!

Sep 9, 2017

On this the 36th episode of The Law is My Ass podcast, Sid and Joe interview Veterans Benefits expert Jeffrey Marion, talk about the Trump administration's torrid pace of appointing judges, and you might get answers to the following questions:

  • Is the Trump administration doing nothing? (Hint: not unless appointing judges is "doing nothing")
  • Does Senator Franken have a big blue slip? (Hint: Yes!)
  • How is the administration faring at the Ninth Circuit? (Hint: lost again)
  • Are municipalities still jailing people just for being poor? (Hint: as of this week, one fewer)
  • Is credit reporting agency Experian a good corporate citizen? (Hint: all indications point to "NO!")
  • Is Verizon tracking your web use? (Hint: Yes!)
  • How is a TBI like herbicide-induced cancer? (Hint: both can get you veterans disability benefits)
  • How is a ship at port different from a ship at sea? (Hint: in the same way that brown water is not blue)
  • How can we help our veterans? (Hint: listen and find out!

All that and more! Tune in, listen up, and keep it legal!

Sep 2, 2017

We're excited that Sid is back from his summer comedy tour of Scotland, and thrilled to present you Joe's interview of Rutgers Law Professor Katie Eyer about laws affecting the transgender community!

Before that, Sid and Joe give a shout out to sponsors Green Light Jerky and perennial supports Roberts Bartolic LLP and their  ERISA Watch Newsletter. And in the Random Legal News of the Week with Sid and Joe, you'll learn:

  • Does Wells Fargo cheat its customers? (Hint: apparently);
  • Did Obama wiretap Trump Tower? (Hint: nope);
  • Is Judge Posner retiring? (Hint: nope, he is retired #MovingFast);
  • Can Wyoming sue VW for diesel pollution? (Hint: doubtful);
  • How many judges can President Trump nominate in one week? (Hint: tune in next week and we'll give you a number);
  • Can Texas outlaw sanctuary cities? (Hint: not this week);
  • Is the New York Times a good source of information? (Hint: about Gill v. Whitford, so far, yes!);
  • Can you go to prison for not paying a parking ticket? (Hint: in Florida, yes! #winning);
  • Do courts think that calling someone transgender is an insult? (Hint: at least one court says that it is not!)

Give it a listen, and keep it legal!

Aug 19, 2017

A shout out to all our new subscribers, and our thanks to Roberts Bartolic LLP's ERISA Watch newsletter for plugging the prior episodes featuring our interview with Judge Alex Kozinski!

This week we're on vacation (there's some sort of eclipse-type thing happening and Joe is going to watch it, while Sid continues to try to make Scottish people laugh out loud) - but we're offering a special episode consisting solely of our full, unedited interview with Ninth Circuit Judge Alex Kozinski. No travel ban update (the hearing is August 28 in Seattle ;); no Random Legal News of the Week (there was so much - but it will have to wait); not even any music! This week it's just Joe and Ninth Circuit Judge Alex Kozinski taking about everything from brief writing, to Ayn Rand, to His Honor's views on the death penalty. 

Enjoy this special 90-minute episode, check back for new episodes starting in September, and in the meantime, as always, keep it legal!™

Aug 12, 2017

More Kozinski! After special guest co-host Will Maguire and Joe wade through the travel ban update and the legal news of the week (FBI raids! Google Bros! Breaking Bad!) - we play the second half of Joe's interview with outspoken and controversial Ninth Circuit Judge Alex Kozinski, including his honor's thoughts about

  • The Fourth Amendment
  • How to be friends with the judges you criticize in your dissents
  • Digital privacy and the third party doctrine
  • Whether your mom is a good legal editor
  • Criminal justice reform
  • The death penalty

We will be on hiatus until September - but we hope you'll listen in, and, as always, keep it legal!

Aug 5, 2017

This week Joe and special guest co-host Vernon C. Grigg III walk you through the week's legal developments, including the re-invigorated Ninth Circuit appeal of the revised Hawai'i injunction against the second administration travel ban; the marketing of medications directly to state drug court judges; Wells Fargo's misconduct, which just keeps going, and going, and going; and the Mueller grand jury that empaneled last week but best of all - we close with Part 1 of our 2-part 90-minute interview of Ninth Circuit Judge Alex Kozinski! In this the first half of the interview we touched upon

  • His childhood in Romania
  • His libertarian political views
  • Kurt Vonnegut
  • Bananas
  • Movies and judicial opinions
  • Antitrust laws
  • The Senate Blue Slip process
  • The power (or lack thereof) of big corporations, and
  • Proposals to divide the Ninth Circuit

Next week will be even juicer - in Part 2 of the interview, we touch on the future of privacy rights, the 4th Amendment, and the 3rd Party Doctrine in the digital age, more on judicial opinion writing, his views on the death penalty, and dinner with the Ginsburgs and the Scalias. And as if that weren't enough, Judge Kozinski himself answers your listener questions.

As always, thanks for listening, and keep it legal!

Jul 30, 2017

In this the 31st episode of The Law Is My Ass, with Sid away in Scotland, Joe and guest co-host Vernon C. Grigg III (who was also our guest in episode 24 on the topic of obstruction of justice) covered a ton of ground, including:

  • What's happening with the Travel Ban litigation? (Hint: nothing, more or less)
  • What's happening at the Supreme Court? (Hint: death penalty appeals)
  • As between MJ and OJ, who is the week's winner? (Hint: OJ)
  • Any new law suits against Trump? (Hint: Seriously? We can barely keep up with all the old ones!)
  • Anybody sue Apple lately? (Hint: The University of Wisconsin just got a HALF A BILLION DOLLAR award in a patent suit against Apple...)
  • Can Trump pardon himself? (Hint: reasonable minds may differ)
  • Is Trump going to fire Sessions and Mueller (Hint: seems like a bad idea)
  • Is the whole Trump family going to jail for "collusion"? (Hint: "collusion" is not a crime)
  • With the DOJ arguing that Title VII does not prohibit discrimination against gays and lesbians, are there legal prohibitions against such discrimination? (Hint: Probably)
  • All of which begs the question, what the heck does "begs the question" mean, and should lawyers say it? (Hint: not what you think, and it's up to them)

Listen in for your weekly dose of all things law - thank you as always for listening, and keep it legal!

***YOU WON'T WANT TO MISS NEXT WEEK'S EPISODE WITH OUR VERY SPECIAL GUEST: NINTH CIRCUIT JUDGE ALEX KOZINSKI ! ! !***

Jun 18, 2017

For this the Silver Anniversary Edition of The Law Is My Ass (it's our 25th episode! How crazy is that?) - we welcome back to the podcast the always brilliant and funny Jamie Lee Williams of the Electronic Frontier Foundation to talk about whether the government can track all of your movements all the time (Hint: at the moment, probably). We also talk about how to protect your text messages and your computer browser history (hint: imperfectly).

Before we get to that we talk about the Ninth Circuit's landmark decision in the Hawai'i travel ban appeal - ruling against the Trump administration on STATUTORY and not constitutional grounds! We round up the week's five (count 'em - FIVE!) mostly unanimous Supreme Court decisions including Justice Ginsburg's equal protection opinion in Sessions v. Morales Santana.

And as if all that weren't enough, we talk about new suits against the Trump administration, good news for DACA dreamers bad news for your Christmas plans in Havana, good news for high powered criminal defense attorneys in Washington DC; this morning's mixed news for Bill Cosby; the crime of encouraging suicide; and the Philando Castile verdict.

May 21, 2017

In today's 21st episode of The Law Is My Ass, Sid and Joe ask whether Anthony Weiner must now register as a sex offender, whether Donald Trump has obstructed justice, with Fiat is the new VW, and whether Robert Mueller has conflicts of interest. Then just for kicks we replay rock-star Supreme Court advocate Neal Katyal's argument before the Ninth Circuit last week over the constitutionality and legality of the Trump administration's travel ban - with copious interruptions and comments from the peanut gallery (aka, from Joe and Sid).

Check it out - and keep it legal!

May 13, 2017

For Sid's and Joe's TWENTIETH (!) episode, they eschew the guests to focus on the huge volume of important legal news from the last week, including: did Trump commit obstruction of justice? (Hint: maybe). Did Sessions revive the war on drugs? (Hint: looks that way). If I torrent porn on my home computer am I going to be sued? (Hint: possibly, but it's becoming perhaps less likely). If Trump is making tapes is he headed down the same road as Nixon? (Hint: too soon to say). Are the circuit courts going to get behind the Muslim ban? (Hint: odds are against it).

All that and exciting listener questions about Presidential Succession, and how civil cases are settled. Check it out and keep it legal!

Apr 30, 2017

Joe and Sid cover the legal news of the day - including the upcoming Ninth Circuit and Fourth Circuit oral arguments in the travel ban litigation appeals; the new ruling against President Trump's "sanctuary city" EO; recent Supreme Court cases; Justice Breyer's cell phone; and an exciting interview with cannabis law expert Katy Young! All that and listener questions too!

Feb 19, 2017

Today, Sid and Joe talk to immigration lawyer Veronica Guinto about the so-called "Muslim Ban" and all the litigation surrounding it - suits in New York, Virginia, Massachusetts, Washington, Hawaii, and in front of the Ninth Circuit: what did they all find, where do they all stand, and what happens now that the administration says it's going to issue a superseding order?

Also, Sid and Joe answer the questions "is the Ninth Circuit the most reversed circuit in the country?" (hint: the answer is "no"); "may I renounce my US citizenship?" (hint: the answer is yes); and based on what rule was Mitch McConnell picking on Senator Warren? 

It's a great episode - and a long one! We hope you enjoy it. Keep it legal!

Jan 29, 2017

Today Sid and Joe talk about the legality of the Trump Administrations new pseudo Muslim ban and the lawsuit that the ACLU filed against it. 
Here is a link to the executive order: https://www.scribd.com/document/337740314/Trump-Executive-Order-1#download
Here is a link to the ACLU's lawsuit:
http://static.politico.com/14/2a/f36cb79143f09381f4c1acac7ab4/trump-lawsuit.pdf

[Note - our February 4 episode will be devoted to this topic]

 

Once they got that out of the way, Sid and Joe had a great conversation with employee benefits expert Eric Schillinger of the ERISA boutique law firm Trucker Huss about the mechanics, economics, politics, and real world impact of the impending ACA (i.e., "Obamacare") repeal.

 

Dec 11, 2016

On this the final episode of 2016, financial elder abuse experts Shawna Reeves and Neil Granger join Joe Creitz and Sid Singh to talk about some of the ways that reverse mortgages, annuities, and other sneaky financial products are deceptively marketed to the elderly to bilk them out of their money. Sid and Joe also talk about the unanimous Samsung v. Apple decision from the Supreme Court this week, and contemplate the question "is a rectangle with rounded corners worth $399 Million?" We also talk about the Supreme Court's unanimous insider trading decision, and the idea that givers as well as recipients benefit from gifts. All that, plus listener questions, Hawaiian rum, and whether or not we can file a class action lawsuit against Russia for hurting all of our feelings. Check it out, have a great New Year, and keep it legal!

Dec 3, 2016

In perhaps our best show to date, in this 5th episode of The Law Is My Ass, law student/comedian Sid Singh and Professor Joe Creitz talk to fair-election expert and all around electoral superstar Sachin Chheda about whether or not the Packers should fire Mike McCarthy (the vote split was 1 for "NO" - and two abstentions); the Wisconsin gerrymandering lawsuit (and the one in North Carolina too!); David Daley's great book "Rat F**ked"; the recount; and fairness in electoral policies generally. We also answer listener questions about what constitutes a breach of contract, and the famous Louisiana political wise-guy Huey Long. Send us your questions for next week at LawMyAss@gmail.com and find us every week on iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCoud, and at http://lawmyass.libsyn.com/ 

Nov 27, 2016

This week law professor Joe Creitz and comedian Sid Singh talk about the demise of Fidel Castro, the constitutional rights of Tila Tequila, and we talk with U.W.- Whitewater Professor Emeritus John Kozlowicz about criminal justice policy and DUI courts. Among the things we learned today were that, if you feel like you really have no choice but to drive under the influence of alcohol (and we don't recommend it), Walworth County Wisconsin might be the place to do it.

Nov 19, 2016

In Episode 3 of the The Law Is My Ass, Joe Creitz and Sid Singh talk about the Trump U. fraud settlement, and speak with Wisconsin civil rights attorney Stan Davis about student rights, the limits of eye-witness testimony, legal claims against the NFL, and what it takes to make Luke Kuechly cry. All that plus listener questions, Obama quotes, and Sid

Nov 12, 2016

It is November 12, Donald Trump has won the Presidential election, and Sid and Joe are here to talk law in episode 2 of The Law is My ASs. Comedian Sid Singh and law professor Joe Creitz talk about the legal implications of a Trump administration, read the Constitution, discuss the importance of standing up for what's right, and answer listener questions!

Nov 5, 2016

In this the inaugural episode of the Law Is My Ass (aka "Law My Ass!") podcast Joe Creitz and Sid Singh discuss currently burning legal issues including "Is Donald Trump Going On Trial For Child Rape in December???" (hint: no!); is Facebook your best source for quality legal analysis (hint: no!); what does it really mean that the Supreme Court has only 8 justices right now; and "Will Hillary Clinton Take Our Guns Away?" (hint: no!).

We hope to become your go to source for credible, thoughtful, accurate and humorous analysis and information about the legal issues that everyone is talking about.

Joe Creitz is a law professor at UC Hastings College of the Law, and a federal court litigator with Creitz & Serebin, LLP in San Francisco, California. Sid Singh is a professional comedian and law student. Together, they are producing the Law My Ass podcast for your edification.

 

 

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