As we enter the February sitting, we give you the rarest of episodes: a completely comprehensive preview of all the cases that will be argued this week! All two of them!This episode is sponsored by Helix Sleep. To take Helix Sleep's sleep qui

OT2018 #18: "Rorschach Test"

Feb 11th, 2019 1h 9m

We thought it'd be a quiet week, but the Supreme Court had other plans. Amy Howe joins to catch us up on the news. We also get a taste of American University law professor Robert Tsai's new book, Practical Equality: Forging Justice in a Divided

OT2018 #17: "The Most Distinguished Recording Location"

Feb 4th, 2019 1h 7m

Dan and Leah were in San Francisco this past weekend for a great symposium sponsored by the Hastings Law Journal called "The Jurisprudence of Justice Anthony M. Kennedy—Four Decades of Influence." While he was in the City by the Bay, Dan mana

OT2018 #16: "From Scratch"

Jan 28th, 2019 1h 32m

We've got a breather between sittings, so Steve Sachs joins us as we recap an opinion, take a look at some grants and orders, discuss whether law school clinics are good or bad ideas, and ask a lot of questions about Steve and Will Baude's amic

OT2018 #15: "Second Best Opinion"

Jan 21st, 2019 1h

The January sitting is over and the Court will be out of session for a few weeks. But First Mondays keeps on working even when the Justices are taking a break. Dan and Leah catch you up on the court's latest opinions; review the big batch of ce

OT2018 #14 "Decent Take"

Jan 14th, 2019 1h 2m

Dan and Leah are joined by Danielle D'Onfro to break down the first week of the January sitting. We catch you up on everything the Court has been up to—including Justice Kavanaugh's very first majority opinion—before recapping oral arguments in

OT2018 #13: "Beer For Lunch"

Jan 7th, 2019 1h 6m

New year, new sitting! Merritt McAlister joins us from the University of Florida to catch up on Supreme Court news and look ahead to the coming arguments.Thanks to Everlane for sponsoring this week's show. To see a collection of our favorite

Amici #25 [UNLOCKED]: "Tough Phone Call"

Dec 24th, 2018 1h 16m

Merry Christmas Eve! We at First Mondays have gotten you all the gift we know you've been wishing for: an unlocked bonus episode that was previously released exclusively to our Patreon backers.Last June, Dan interviewed our first judicial gue

OT2018 #12: "Inconceivable!"

Dec 17th, 2018 1h 49m

It's an off week for the Supreme Court, so we've got another great ensemble cast to take a deep dive into issues that regularly come up on the show. Kate Shaw of Cardozo Law guest hosts with Leah. Anne Joseph O'Connell joins us to discuss the a

OT2018 #11: "A Lot Of Meatballs"

Dec 10th, 2018 1h 27m

There are twice as many women in this episode as there were at the Supreme Court podium in the whole December sitting. Leah and guest host Jaime Santos recap the week's arguments with two special guests. First, we’re delighted to have with us L

OT2018 #10: "Come On, General"

Dec 3rd, 2018 1h 18m

There's a lot to catch up on this week-- the second opinion of the term, some weird filings from the government, and plenty of Supreme Court news. Dan and Leah also recap two arguments: Carpenter v. Murphy and Timbs v. Indiana. We'll also look

OT2018 #9: "8,000 Pounds of Shark Fins"

Nov 26th, 2018 1h 34m

If you're sick of leftovers, we've cooked up a fresh batch of argument previews for your enjoyment. Beth Colgan of UCLA joins us to prepare and serve the main course: a fascinating case about excessive fines (yes, really) called Timbs v. Indian

OT2018 #8: "Animal Magnetism"

Nov 19th, 2018 1h 8m

The First Mondays national tour continues! This week we’re live at Duke Law School, with not one but two great guest hosts: Professors Marin Levy and Steve Sachs. We catch up on recent SCOTUS news and talk through a recent set of opinions from

OT2018 #7: "Now Who's the Legal Realist?"

Nov 12th, 2018 1h 20m

If you were hoping that the Supreme Court news cycle would slow down, you’re going to be disappointed this week—there’s a lot to talk about! Will and Dan catch you up on Justice Ginsburg’s health scare, Justice Kavanaugh’s investiture, a couple

OT2018 #6: "Hook 'Em, Tom"

Nov 5th, 2018 1h 22m

We're live at the University of Texas School of Law in Austin! Because of Ian's early arrival, Texas's Prof. Steve Vladeck stepped up to the plate to join Dan as a guest host. We talk about a recently revealed SCOTUS-related wedding proposal, t

OT2018 #5: "Arbitration Nation"

Oct 31st, 2018 57m 34s

This episode is late, but we have a good reason.We get up to speed on Supreme Court news, as well as some grants with truly great and truly terrible case names. Then, we turn to the week's arguments, making you an expert in all things arbitra

OT2018 #4: "This Is About Frogs"

Oct 22nd, 2018 1h

First Mondays is live from Columbia Law School, where we bring in a ringer: guest Professor Richard Epstein of NYU. He joins us in discussing the frogs of Weyerhaeuser Company v. United States Fish and Wildlife Service and a very mysterious bri

OT2018 #3: "Ordinary Pinch"

Oct 15th, 2018 1h 30m

Judge Kavanaugh is now Associate Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh, and so we're back to a nine-member Court. Since Will is filling in as recurring guest host, we'll take a look at the so-called "shadow docket" to see what the justices are up to outsi

OT2018 #2: "Alea Iacta Est"

Oct 8th, 2018 1h 12m

You might have forgotten given everything else that has been going on, but the Supreme Court is actually still hearing cases. We're halfway through the October sitting, and Ian is joined by returning guest host Professor James Stern of William

OT2018 #1: "Rearranging Deck Chairs"

Oct 1st, 2018 1h 20m

The first Monday of October Term 2018 is upon us, which means it's time for the kick-off of our third season. Live from Washington University in St. Louis, we bring you previews of the week's arguments. The cases involve a range of issues, from

OT2018 #0: "Looks A Lot Like Grift"

Sep 24th, 2018 1h 11m

We're kicking off our third season with a live show at William & Mary! Professor James Stern joins us as we take the birds-eye view of OT2018. This year will bring cases about excessive fines, the death penalty, and just about everything in bet

In Recess #10: "Special Horses"

Sep 17th, 2018 1h 10m

It's our first five-mic episode! We're joined by Kent Greenfield and Adam Winkler, who both have new books about corporate personhood, as well as our bankruptcy expert, Danielle D'Onfro.Kent's book is Corporations Are People Too: (And They Sh

Good Behaviour #10: "Bad Bens"

Sep 10th, 2018 1h 28m

In our (hopefully) final episode of Good Behaviour (for a while), Ian and Leah discuss their favorite and least favorite moments of the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings.Thanks to Everlane for sponsoring this week's show. To see a collection of

In Recess #9: "Hoofbeats in the Distance"

Sep 3rd, 2018 50m 36s

Just in time for the Kavanaugh confirmation circus, we have a lively interview with David Kaplan about his new book, The Most Dangerous Branch: Inside the Supreme Court's Assault on the Constitution.This episode is sponsored by Lending Club.

Good Behaviour #9: "A Bunch of Printers"

Aug 27th, 2018 1h 23m

Will Baude joins us to discuss the latest news of the Kavanaugh nomination. Plus, what do we mean when we talk about originalism?Thanks to Blinkist for sponsoring this episode. Not enough time to read that stack of books on your shelf? Blinki