Podcast
Serious Trouble
Hosted by Josh Barro and Ken White · EN
22episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
The No-Judgment Fund
2w ago00:30:27Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showDonald Trump has announced a new $1.776 billion “anti-weaponization fund” to be doled out as he sees fit to “victims” of the “weaponization” of the Justice Department. It's financed from the Judgment Fund, a strange legal creature — it’s a permanent, unlimited appropriation the federal government can use to pay judgments and settlements. But like… doesn’t that have to be for real lawsuits with plausible claims that could win in court? Also: an ex-AUSA has been criminally charged for sending herself electronic copies of confidential reports about the findings from Jack Smith’s documents investigation into the president. She gave the files names like “bundt cake recipe."That’s for free subscribers. Paying subscribers get our discussions about:* An ICE agent facing state criminal charges in Minnesota.* Elon Musk losing in his civil trial against Sam Altman, and the complex set of circumstances that led the presiding judge to seek an advisory verdict from the jury before disposing of the case herself.* A counterclaim from Lorna Hajdini in the JP Morgan saga.* Chud the Builder, unfortunately (in part because of his whiny lawyer).* Trouble for timeshare billionaire Stephen Cloobeck — Eric Swalwell’s onetime benefactor — and Cloobeck’s ex-Penthouse Pet fiancée, Adva Lavie, a.k.a. “Mia Ventura.”* Rep. Max Miller, who apparently has the worst luck with women, is suing his ex-wife for defamation, saying she’s making up lies about him being abusive, just like his ex-girlfriend before her, whom he also sued for defamation when she called him abusive.* And Clavicular pleads no-contest to shooting a dead alligator, is sentenced to non-livestreamed community service — and gets brutally mogged by Judge Marcus Bach-Armas, a total chad who used to be in-house counsel for the Miami Dolphins.
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'Advice of Counsel' Does Not Apply to Advice from Licensed Airboat Captains
3w ago00:17:25Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThe lurid JP Morgan sex case has gotten more interesting: apparently, the bank offered a $1 million settlement to the banker who wanted an eight-figure settlement related to the lurid sex-harassment allegations he has made against a senior colleague. Something is weird here. Also this week:The Justice Department wants to stand in as the defendant in the case where E. Jean Carroll won a large judgment for comments Donald Trump made about her during his first presidential term, which would defeat her claim, since the government cannot be liable for defamation, the DOJ is also suing the DC Bar to stop professional discipline for Jeffrey ‘Oil Spill’ Clark, and no, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro does not need to recuse herself from Cole Allen’s case merely because she was present at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.That’s for all listeners this week. Upgrade to hear about much more:* Another Trump tariff effort gets struck down because the Court of International Trade decided to actually form a view on what constitutes a balance-of-payments crisis.* ABC fighting back against the Federal Communications Commission, urged on by the commission’s lone Democratic member (and Ken explains why they’re even bothering to fight at the agency level before going to court.)* The fight over the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool, or “more aesthetic standing bullshit,” as Ken’s notes describe it.* Richard Murdaugh’s remarkable win in court (for now).* A silly lawsuit against Matt Damon, and* A misdo charge for Clav, who says he was merely following the guidance of a licensed airboat captain when he shot a (possibly already dead) alligator.
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Don't Use the Public Chatbot Lawyer
4w ago00:23:55Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThere's a lot of stupid litigation to cover this week, starting with the lawsuit so many of you asked us about. An ex-banker who has made salacious allegations against a former JP Morgan colleague, but how credible are they? And what can you do if you are a bank or a banker and someone makes preposterous allegations against you in a legal filing, which is privileged against defamation claims?Also this week: Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni have settled, with no exchange of funds between the two sides, but that doesn't mean it wasn't expensive. Matt Taibbi lost his dumb lawsuit against Eoin Higgins. A Michigan defendant who made way more threatening-sounding comments than James Comey ever did nonetheless enjoys First Amendment protection (but will have to seek relief in state court if prosecutors go after him again). Does Cole Allen belong on suicide watch? DOJ apologizes to a federal judge for not telling her a detained migrant in her court was wanted for murder (she released the migrant and then DHS attacked her for releasing an accused murderer). The FTC surrenders in its fight against Media Matters. The DOJ seeks to memory-hole the Jerome Powell subpoenas (which would perhaps make it easier to reissue them later). Gavin Newsom is getting further than we expected with a kinda dumb defamation lawsuit against Fox News. And preservationists try to stop Donald Trump from tearing up the East Potomac Park golf course to build a championship-style course.Visit serioustrouble.show to upgrade your subscription and hear full episodes.
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I'm Still Mad He Put Martha Stewart In Prison
May 100:21:29Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week Ken and Josh discuss the James Comey indictment, this time, purportedly for threatening the president with seashells. They also discuss the criminal complaint against would-be assassin Cole Tomas Allen and Maurene Comey’s lawsuit over her firing for being James Comey’s daughter.That’s this week’s free show. Paying subscribers also get:* Jeanine Pirro’s screw-up that has resulted in Trump getting less influence at the Federal Reserve than he’d probably have if she’d just played it cool.* A wrench in Trump’s plan to have the IRS pay him a big settlement.* Roy Moore and Diddy have something additional in common — they both are failures at defamation litigation.* A well-deserved spanking for Sam Bankman-Fried.* The SPLC, fighting back.* An apology to Elon Musk from the busybodies at the California Coastal Commission, and* An apology from Sullivan & Cromwell for AI hallucinations in a filing.Upgrade your subscription to receive all of our episodes at serioustrouble.show.
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This Episode Contains No Administrative Procedure Act Coverage
Apr 2400:21:08Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week Ken and Josh discuss several big defamation suits. The Atlantic has reported that Kash Patel is often drunk and derelict in his duties as FBI Director. But Patel says he’s only guilty of working really hard, and he’s suing the Atlantic. He’s got a theory he says is a “slam dunk” — The Atlantic defamed him with actual malice because he denied the accusations against him but they printed him anyway. That theory didn’t work for Trump against The Wall Street Journal and it didn’t work for Patel against Frank Figliuzzi Jr., who accused him of being a nightclub rat on Morning Joe, but maybe it will work this time? (It won’t).Also, his lawyer did something incompetent — shocker.And more formidably, former Capitol Police officer Shauni Kerkhoff is suing The Blaze and two of its “journalists” for accusing her of being the Capitol Hill pipe bomber, on the basis of a shoddy “gait analysis” alleging that her limp matched the way the bomber walked on surveillance video. Proving actual malice is hard — as a police officer, Kerkhoff is treated as a public figure in the coverage of her work — but the journalists’ persistence with their accusations even after Brian Cole was arrested for the bombings strengthens her case. She also has very real defamation lawyers: Clare Locke, the firm that got the huge settlement out of Fox for Dominion Voting Systems.That defamation coverage is for all listeners this week. In the full premium episode, there’s also:* Even more defamation coverage, with Laura Loomer losing at summary judgment in her lawsuit against Bill Maher, and Megan Thee Stallion failing to obtain a court order instructing Milagro Cooper to stop talking about her.* A preliminary injunction telling Apple and Facebook to restore anti-ICE resources they took off the internet at the government’s behest.* The SPLC indictment.* A settlement for Carter Page.* A Sam Bankman-Fried update.* And a court ruling that says it’s legal to be a huge dick in Alabama.Upgrade your subscription to receive all of our episodes at serioustrouble.show.
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Call the Swalwell Hotline
Apr 1800:19:27Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week Ken and Josh discuss Eric Swallwell and how prosecutors in Manhattan and Los Angeles are looking into sexual assault allegations against the now-former congressman. Meanwhile, US Attorney Jeanine Pirro — who oversees local felony prosecutions in the District of Columbia — has set up a hotline for victims who may have been assaulted by Swalwell there.Besides looking into Swalwell, Pirro sent a couple of her henchpersons to the under-construction Federal Reserve headquarters looking for … something. An “I personally ordered the cost overruns” note from Jay Powell? We’re not sure, and probably neither were they — going to the crime scene is not something AUSAs do, as Ken notes from his own rueful experience of being denied an all-expenses paid trip to the Inland Empire, and the stunt seems only to have strengthened the resolve of Sen. Thom Tillis to block any confirmations of Trump Fed nominees.That’s on this week’s show plus, for paying subscribers:* Trump moves to vacate convictions of Oath Keeper and Proud Boy January 6 defendants whose convictions he’d previously chosen not to pardon;* A panel of the DC Circuit Court of Appeals again frustrates James Boasberg’s investigation into non-compliance with his orders about deportations;* Trump’s defamation lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal is dismissed for failure to plead actual malice;* The Pentagon continues to try to avoid complying with an order to reinstate reporters’ access;* Bill Essayli loses yet another case against immigration protesters; and* A lesson on aesthetic standing (and how not to use AI!) from the Tiger King.Upgrade your subscription to receive all of our episodes at serioustrouble.show.
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Welcome Home, Michael
Apr 1200:21:42Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week Ken and Josh discuss updates on three of their favorite characters: Michael Avenatti, Pam Bondi, and Ed Martin.That's for all subscribers. Paying subscribers will also hear their conversations about:* Trump’s emergency motion to lift the stay on construction of the “desperately needed” White House ballroom, and a discussion of why the plaintiffs’ claims to standing are stronger than we gave them credit for last week.* A Clavicular-alligator update.* If you’re going to talk about how you want to do terrorism, don’t do it in front of your dash cam.* Long-suffering federal judge Lewis Liman’s 152-page order dismissing most, but not all, of Blake Lively’s claims against the producers of It Ends With Us (and their publicists), and Ken’s discussion of why you shouldn’t sexually harass your independent contractors, even if it might technically not be illegal.* Elon Musk’s antitrust loss.Upgrade your subscription to receive all of our episodes at serioustrouble.show.
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Strictly Prohibited Ballroom
Apr 500:21:18Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week Ken and Josh discuss Anthropic's big win, the injunction on Trump's ballroom construction, and what to make of the block on Trump's executive order defunding PBS and NPR since Congress has rescinded their funding.That's for all subscribers. Paying subscribers will also hear our conversations about:* Covington & Burling warned its client, ActBlue, that some statements ActBlue made in a 2023 letter to congressional leaders may have been misleading, and that ActBlue’s CEO probably needs her own lawyer to deal with her legal exposure around that fact. ActBlue responded by firing Covington & Burling. It’s a big old mess, and Ken describes how this kind of thing can happen when you represent an entity, and the entity’s legal needs don’t always line up with the legal needs of its executives.* A Colorado appeals court threw out Tina Peters’ nine-year sentence for voting machine tampering, saying the judge raised her sentence in response to her constitutionally-protected speech.* After his car accident, Tiger Woods issued a statement saying he will step away and “seek treatment.” It’s an implicit admission of DUI, but as Ken notes, he’s very unlikely to beat the rap on DUI anyway, and this is a situation where his PR need to speak up and take responsibility may actually outweigh his legal prerogative to shut up.* FBI agents are suing Kash Patel for wrongful termination, and taking the opportunity to tell embarrassing stories about Patel that may not be strictly germane to their litigation.* Some people who went to the Capitol for January 6 have filed a new class action lawsuit, apparently hoping to join in on the Trump settlement gravy train.* Be careful what buttons you click on LinkedIn.* And, by popular demand, Ken analyzes Clavicular’s predicaments.Upgrade your subscription to receive all of our episodes at serioustrouble.show.
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Pro Se Exam
Mar 2700:24:09Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week Ken and Josh discuss Judge Lewis Kaplan losing some patience with Sam Bankman-Fried, and not just because Bankman-Fried’s mom tried to communicate with him ex parte. SBF has been making purportedly pro se filings, at least one of which appears to have been dictated to and FedExed by his mother, and he simultaneously has an appeal proceeding in the appeals court with real lawyers. Kaplan says he has to choose — are you pro se or not? And he wants to know — have any lawyers besides mom been helping with these filings he’s supposedly personally responsible for?Meanwhile, the “Department of War” has been having a rough time in court. The Pentagon’s anti-reporting press policy has been thrown out as a First Amendment violation, so now the Pentagon says no reporters at all can work out of the Pentagon press room. Meanwhile, Anthropic won a preliminary injunction blocking the Pentagon’s declaration that the company is a “Supply Chain Risk.” (The Anthropic order came down after we taped — we’ll have a further update on next week’s show.)That’s for all subscribers. Paying subscribers will also hear our conversations about:* DOJ’s admission that it had no evidence of a crime related to Jay Powell’s testimony about Federal Reserve headquarters renovation cost overruns (and the surprisingly low bar for issuing a subpoena that the government nevertheless failed to clear).* A surprisingly practical choice by DOJ in New Jersey.* Minnesota’s effort to force the federal government to disclose investigative material related to the shooting deaths of Alex Pretti and Renée Good.* Mike Lindell in contempt of court.* Mike Flynn getting a settlement from Trump for his alleged persecution by Trump’s own DOJ.* No protective order for those DOGE henchman depositions.* And the Oklahoma Supreme Court telling attorneys to go ahead and use AI, if they dare.Upgrade your subscription to receive all of our episodes at serioustrouble.show.
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Pound Cake for Everyone
Mar 2000:24:40Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.serioustrouble.showThis week Ken and Josh discuss the Afroman trial and also look at a rough hearing for AUSAs in New Jersey, as the Trump administration decides it will hire candidates straight out of law school to work in US Attorneys’ offices.That’s for all subscribers. Paying subscribers will also hear our conversations about:* Judge James Boasberg’s order quashing subpoenas to the Federal Reserve, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s choice to appeal that order, and Boasberg’s other order requiring the disclosure of grand jury no-bills.* Capitol pipe bomber defendant Brian Cole, who has made his anticipated claim that the president’s pardon of January 6 rioters also applies to him (even though this seems to go against the plain language of the pardon, which applies only to those “convicted” of offenses related to January 6.)* Sam Bankman-Fried’s mom, who got slapped down for trying to have ex-parte communications with the judge overseeing his case; Judge Lewis Kaplan reminded Prof. Barbara Fried that she might be a lawyer, but she’s not her son’s lawyer, at least not in this case.* Defendants convicted of terrorism-related offenses in Texas over an anti-ICE action where they set off fireworks and one defendant shot a law enforcement officer in the neck; as Ken notes, despite the rhetoric on both sides, this trial was never really about whether ‘Antifa’ constitutes a terror organization.* More hot hot administrative procedure action, with Judge Brian Murphy issuing a preliminary injunction against the new, laxer child vaccination guidelines from Robert F. Kennedy Jr’.s Department of Health and Human Services.* And dog-fashion magazine Dogue, which is being sued by Condé Nast for infringing the Vogue trademark.Upgrade your subscription to receive all of our episodes at serioustrouble.show.
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