Podcast
Opening Arguments
Hosted by Opening Arguments Media LLC · EN
Opening Arguments is a law show that helps you make sense of the news! Comedian Thomas Smith brings on legal analysts to help you understand not only current events, but also deeper legal concepts and areas!
The typical schedule will be M-W-F with Monday being a deep-dive, Wednesday being Thomas Takes the Bar Exam and patron shoutouts, and Friday being a rapid response to legal issues in the news!
95episodes
Episodes
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LAM1015: Outlaw
1w ago00:49:24Tap to summarizeLAM1015 - Jimmy Smits stars as a gambling, sports-shooting Supreme Court Justice with a law clerk paid to fend off his advances, in NBC's forgotten 2010 flop Outlaw. Thomas, Matt, and Lydia can barely get through a single scene without stopping to ask what this show thinks a Justice actually does. This free 45-minute preview only scratches the surface of how bad it gets. $2+ Patrons already have this full episode, plus an early part 2 of Jenessa's 4th Amendment privacy deep dive, at patreon.com/law. Friday brings a Gavel Gavel crossover on the ruling that blew up Trump and Todd Blanche's corrupt IRS settlement. Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!
Transcribe →How SCOTUS Paved the Way for Flock Cameras
2w ago00:57:17Tap to summarizeOA1282 - Is anything private any more? Depends which Supreme Court Justice you ask. To kick off a series of episodes around data privacy and the law, first Jenessa walks us through a string of Supreme Court cases addressing 4th Amendment rights and technology. In part 1, we cover landmark cases with wiretapping, beepers, GPS trackers, thermal imaging, and more. Stick around for part 2 to hear how the modern composition of the court is responding to the proliferation of new technologies. Cases discussed: Olmstead v. United States Katz v. United States United States v. Knotts United States v. Karo Kyllo v. United States Riley v. California United States v. Miller Smith v. Maryland United States v. Jones Part 2 of this breakdown drops early for patrons at patreon.com/law. Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!
Transcribe →Todd Blanche Can Also Lie and Dodge Questions in Writing Too!
2w ago00:47:56Tap to summarizeOA1281 - As we wait on the final vote tally for Attorney General nominee Todd Blanche, we take a look at written responses which he recently provided into the record to answer a wide range of Senate questions the day after his hearing concluded. We also take a closer look at how the 5th Circuit is trying to make a recent Clarence Thomas concurrence into law, and how Thomas’s retrograde reading of the Constitution’s Commerce Clause could end federal firearms charges and potentially take one of the pillars of the entire federal criminal punishment system along with them. Finally in today’s footnote: AI in the courtroom hits an unbelievable new low. “Questions for the Record” for Todd Blanche issued after his confirmation hearing, with Blanche’s responses (7/17/2026) U.S. v. Hemani (6/18/2026) En banc order from the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in USA v. Squire (2026) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!
Transcribe →Law on the Spectrum, with Peter O'Neil
3w ago00:57:52Tap to summarizeOA1280 - Peter O’Neil was preparing for retirement after decades of practicing law when he learned that he was autistic at the age of 65. This realization inspired his memoir My So-Called Disorder: Autism, Exploding Trucks, and the Big Daddy of Rock and Roll, in which he looks back at his life and legal career to better understand how his neurodiversity played a role in both his most significant personal challenges and the unique professional talents which helped him to take on some of the largest corporations in the US as a products liability attorney. In this unusual intergenerational exchange between lawyers on the spectrum, Peter and Matt discuss their experiences and appreciate the ways that these so-called “disorders” have made them who they are. Peter O'Neil is the author of My So-Called Disorder, Autism, Exploding Trucks, and the Big Daddy of Rock and Roll, this month's OA Book Club pick. Join him live for book club on July 26th at 4:30pm Eastern, for patrons at any level at patreon.com/law. Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!
Transcribe →What Happened to You, Todd Blanche?
3w ago00:51:36Tap to summarizeOA1279 - This week on Rapid Response Friday: A federal judge rips up the corrupt “settlement” Trump reached with his own IRS at the unprecedented request of a group of 35 former federal judges just in time time for aspiring Attorney General Todd Blanche’s confirmation hearing, humanizing the latest victims of ICE, and a metafootnote about a DC judge who hates footnotes nearly as much as Matt loves them. The Agenda: Williams' IRS ruling Blanche confirmation hearing Salgado Araujo shooting Duran Guerrero shooting Boasberg's footnote crusade Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!
Transcribe →Nancy Mace Thinks Anyone With a Foreign Name Is Disloyal
3w ago01:02:22Tap to summarizeVR38 - This week in Vapid Response Thomas, Lydia, and Matt review some truly awful takes from a MAGA economist on the true cause of low crime rates, Rep. Nancy Mace on her extremely real and not-at-all-racist concerns about the dangers of judges with dual citizenship, and a then-20-year-old Rolling Stone columnist in 1969 on his immediate disdain for what would become one of the greatest rock albums of all time. “Trump’s Immigration Enforcement Really is Slashing Violent Crime,” John R. Lott, Jr, The Federalist (July 9, 2026) FBI’s National Crime Victims Survey data “Governing America means loyalty to America,” Rep. Nancy Mace, Newsweek (July 4, 2026) Judge Sparkle Sooknanan’s preliminary injunction order in League of Women Voters v DHS Judicial nominee Sparkle Sooknanan’s responses to Sen. Lindsay Graham’s judicial questionnaire (March 20, 2024) “The Top 15 Bullshit Album Reviews That Rolling Stone Magazine Had the Balls to Publish,” Reel Harmonies (July 14, 2014) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!
Transcribe →The MAGA Justices Get Torched by... Amy Coney Barrett?!
4w ago01:03:42Tap to summarizeOA1278 - On its face, the decision in Watson is a pretty narrow ruling. Some states allow ballots postmarked on or before election day, but arriving after election day, to be counted. The court decided they can continue to do so. But at stake was so much more. Bubbling under the surface, election deniers were trying to open a door to far more aggressive limitations on voting rights. With this decision, that door is quite firmly shut… by Barrett? Come hear Jenessa try to survive the cognitive dissonance of finding an ACB opinion extremely well-written, thorough, and appropriately critical of out-of-context half-assed attempts at historical analysis in the dissent. Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!
Transcribe →It's Not Just Prairieland and Broadview. More Lives Are Being Ruined by Unjust Prosecutions.
4w ago00:48:22Tap to summarizeOA1277 - We continue our coverage of the Trump administration’s criminalization of dissent with a brief update on the sentencing of the last remaining Prairieland defendant and a closer look at similar federal prosecutions of ICE protesters in Minneapolis, Spokane, and a number of other jurisdictions. Matt then explains how the DOJ just complicated a case against someone alleged to have leaked the second Jack Smith report in the funniest possible way. Finally, in today’s footnote: that one time that Dan Crenshaw and William Shatner tried to make Starfleet happen. “Final federal Prairieland ‘antifa’ defendant sentenced to six years after helping shooter evade arrest,” The Dallas Morning News (6/6/2026) Indictment in United States v. Stuckart et al., Eastern District of Washington (7/9/2025) “DOJ Targets Anti-ICE Demonstrators with Conspiracy Charges,” PBS Newshour on Instagram (3/31/2026) Indictment in United States v. Sant et al., District of Minnesota (6/11/2026) Trump’s Spaghetti-Against-the-Wall Indictment Against ICE Protesters — and How to Fight It, The Intercept (6/17/2026) “As ICE protesters like ‘Spokane 3’ are targeted, many still stand up,” Seattle Times (6/15/2026) “In-Your-Face DOJ Aide Rides Prosecutors for ‘Chief Client’ Trump,” Bloomberg (2/19/2026) ‘Go Big and Go Loud’: Inside the Justice Dept.’s Push to Prosecute Protesters, New York Times (3/19/2026) Indictment in United States of America v. Carmen Mercedes Lineberger, Southern District of Florida (5/19/2026) “William Shatner Wants to Know: What the Heck is Wrong With You, Space Force?” William Shatner, Military Times (8/26/2020) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!
Transcribe →Ben Shapiro is having AI write his columns, and apparently not even the good models
Jul 801:10:21Tap to summarizeVR37 - Ben Shapiro and Matt Walsh both wrote furious, error-riddled columns attacking the Supreme Court's birthright citizenship ruling in Trump v. Barbara. And so Thomas, attorney Matt Cameron, and producer Lydia ran the columns through an AI detector and their BS detectors to see just how fake and how BS they were. Spoiler: it's a lot.
Transcribe →Trump Is Once Again Trying to Change the Law With Memos
Jul 600:53:26Tap to summarizeOA1276 - Who could have predicted this? Us! The Trump administration has made their complete disdain for people with disabilities clear since day one. We’ve called it out before, and the natural progression of those efforts came to a head mid-June when they announced their intention to turn over governance of special education to RFK Jr in HHS (least trusted man in America when it comes to the needs of your child with a disability), continue dismantling the Department of Education overall, further reduce their investigations of educational discrimination, and, just two days later, their commitment to overturning major protections against forced institutionalization. What’s happening, how did we get here, why does it matter, and what can anyone do about it? Tune in to find out. OA episode callbacks: 1238 Deep dive on Olmstead 1180 the history of forced institutionalization and “ugly laws”, and the executive order “Ending crime and disorder on America’s streets” 1141 The Section 504 protests 1171 A.J.T. v Osseo area schools (rights to accommodations for students with disabilities) Part 1; attempted dismantling of Olmstead: Olmstead v. L.C. ex rel. Zimring, 527 U.S. 581 (1999) 28 C.F.R. § 35.130(d) Exec. Order No. 14321, 90 Fed. Reg. 35817 (Jul 24, 2025) Application of the Rehabilitation Act and Americans with Disabilities Act to State Institutionalization of Patients with Severe Mental Illness or Disabilities, 50 Op. O.L.C. __ (June 18, 2026) Part 2; the dismantling of the Department of Education: Exec. Order No. 14242, 90 Fed. Reg. 13679 (Mar. 20, 2025) Compl., State of New York v. McMahon, No. 1:25-cv-10601 (D. Mass. amended 01/09/2026) McMahon v. New York, 606 U.S. ___ (2025) Interagency Agreement Between the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Labor Relating to the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE) (plus addendums) Christy Wolfe (Dec. 16, 2025), Transferring K-12 Programs to Labor: Why Costs and Logistics Could Be a Problem for States and Schools, Bipartisan Policy Center Jennifer Smith Richards & Jodi S. Cohen (Mar. 2, 2026), ProPublica Sues Education Department for Withholding Records About Discrimination in Schools, ProPublica. U.S. Government Accountability Office (Feb. 2, 2026), Department of Education: Full Costs and Savings Estimate Needed for Reduction-in-Force and Restructuring of the Office for Civil Rights. U.S. Dept. of Education (June 16, 2026). U.S. Department of Education Announces Additional Partnerships to Strengthen Coordination for Individuals with Disabilities Programs, Bolster Civil Rights Enforcement. A.J.T. v. Osseo Area Schools, Independent School Dist. No. 279, 605 U.S. 335 (2025) Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973: 29 U.S.C. § 794 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act: 20 U.S.C. § 1400-1409 Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!
Transcribe →