Law and Chaos

Liz Dye; Andrew Torrez

Ignorance of the law is no excuse! That's true for a traffic stop, and it's true if you want to participate in whatever's left of American democracy. If the events since the 2016 election taught us anything, it's that tuning out is not an option. Legal journalists Liz Dye and Andrew Torrez break down the week's most important courtroom stories, so you can keep on top of this crazy news cycle. Whether it's Texas giving two middle fingers to the Supreme Court, or Donald Trump in all the courts at once, we've got you covered.

  1. 2d ago

    Ep 253 — The One Weird Trick Presidency

    DOCKET ALERTS:   Todd Blanche was confirmed as permanent attorney general after Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy remembered that he's an unprincipled hack.   Trump's lackey Will Scharf is being promoted from staff secretary to White House Counsel in advance of the midterms.   The White House is once again trying to fire Federal Reserve Board Member Lisa Cook after the Supreme Court blocked it the first time.   DOOFUS OF THE DAY: Senator Mike Lee, who vowed to block the Senate going into recess until it passed the SAVE America Act. He did not. Instead Majority Leader John Thune made him preside over the session, ensuring that he could not object.   MAIN SHOW:   On Friday, the DC Circuit affirmed the trial judge's order blocking Trump's tacky ballroom — at least the above-ground portion. The government tried to shield this project from judicial review by claiming that the Office of the Executive Residence, which manages floral arrangements and routine maintenance of the White House, was actually superintending the $600 million construction project. But the appeals court nixed it.    The administration hopes to use a similar ONE WEIRD TRICK to slap white paint all over the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. It claims that the project is being overseen by the White House Office of Administration, rather than the General Services Administration. TBD whether Judge Dabney Friedrich lets them get away with it.   Airlines hate Skiplagged.com, which tells consumers how to save money by hopping off flights at the layover. They've failed to shut the site down using various tort claims, and so they tried copyright and trademark.   SUBSCRIBER BONUS:   After the Supreme Court blocked him in June, Trump is once again trying to end birthright citizenship by executive order.   National Trust for Historic Preservation v. National Park Service [DC Circuit Docket] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73239730/national-trust-for-historic-preservation-v-nps   National Trust for Historic Preservation v. National Park Service [Trial Docket] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72028010/national-trust-for-historic-preservation-in-the-united-states-v-national/   Cultural Heritage Partners v. Trump  https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71918245/cultural-heritage-partners-pllc-v-trump/   American Airlines, Inc. v. Skiplagged, Inc.  https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/67699985/american-airlines-inc-v-skiplagged-inc/   United Airlines' Contract of Carriage https://www.united.com/en/us/fly/contract-of-carriage.html   Trump EO: "Ending Birth Tourism" https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/08/ending-birth-tourism/   Trump EO: "Continuing to Protect the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship" https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/08/continuing-to-protect-the-meaning-and-value-of-american-citizenship/ Show Links: https://www.lawandchaospod.com/ BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPod Threads: @LawAndChaosPod Twitter: @LawAndChaosPod

    Ep 253 — The One Weird Trick Presidency

  2. 6d ago

    Ep 252 — Blanche, Boutros, and Buc-ee's

    DOCKET ALERTS:   Todd Blanche advanced out of the Judiciary Committee and faces a vote by the full Senate on whether to confirm him as Attorney General. Will Republicans defy—JK,LOL.   Journalist Katie Phang's lawsuit against Blanche for failing to disclose all documents required under the Epstein Files Transparency Act hit a snag when the government just plum forgot to file an answer to her complaint. The DOJ also failed to provide unredacted documents to Judge Emmet Sullivan for review in chambers. Judge Sullivan ordered Blanche to personally appear in court on August. 13.   DOOFUS OF THE DAY: Third Circuit Judge Jennifer Mascott, who spent the first six months of her judicial tenure moonlighting as the head of a PR firm which solicited MAGA clients.   MAIN SHOW:   Trump's multitudinous trollsuits do much better in front of his own appointees than in front of normal judges. Judge Roy Altman has utterly beclowned himself in Trump's lawsuits against Capital One and the BBC. But his cases against the Wall Street Journal, JP Morgan, and the New York Times faced a much cooler reception.   Charges against the Broadview 6 for "conspiracy" to protest were dropped months ago. But the case goes on, as the former defendants ask Judge April Perry to appoint a special counsel to investigate and potentially prosecute the US Attorneys Office in Chicago for contempt of Court. Prosecutors counter that any investigation can be handled by the DOJ's Office of Professional Responsibility, which has been conveniently neutered under Trump.   And we're back on our Buc-ee's BS — can't get enough of those beaver nuggets! Has the convenience-store-on-steroids chain gone too far with its lawsuits against every animal mascot on earth? One plucky teddy bear is fighting back.   SUBSCRIBER BONUS:   Can John Oliver sell parody Buc-ee's merch? We consult a talking squirrel and the greatest amicus brief of all time!   LINKS:    Phang v. Blanche  https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73246595/phang-v-blanche/   US v. Rabbitt [Broadview 6] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71795281/united-states-v-rabbitt   At Trump's DOJ, watchdogs gutted as misconduct complaints soar https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/trumps-doj-watchdogs-gutted-misconduct-complaints-soar-2026-08-06/   'Is she even allowed to be doing this?': Inside a federal judge's side gig running a PR firm https://www.politico.com/news/2026/08/06/jennifer-mascott-federal-judge-adfero-pr-firm-01025871   Buc-ee's v. Teddy's Market [docket via CourtListener] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73290962/buc-ees-ltd-v-teddys-market-llc/   THE GREATEST AMICUS BRIEF OF ALL TIME https://www.acluwv.org/app/uploads/2017/08/2017-08-17-Amended-Amicus-28File-Stamped29.pdf Show Links: https://www.lawandchaospod.com/ BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPod Threads: @LawAndChaosPod Twitter: @LawAndChaosPod

    Ep 252 — Blanche, Boutros, and Buc-ee's

  3. Aug 4

    Ep 251 — You Whack The Guy, You Don't 86 Him

    Andrew is flying solo today. He's got three stories about the petty incompetence of this administration. First, we start off with the likely impending confirmation of Todd Blanche as Attorney General after the DOJ finally put in writing that the $1.8 billion "Anti-Weaponization" slush fund is dead. The Trump tax giveaway is still alive, though, and that means so is Judge Williams's investigation as to whether the President committed a fraud on the court.   Next, we delve into the unraveling of DC US Attorney Jeanine Pirro's ham-handed efforts to try and indict a former Olympian for vandalizing the Reflecting Pool in Washington. Turns out, the problem was the contractor all along. Who knew? (We all knew, including Pirro.)   Finally, we take a look at a trio of motions filed by James Comey in his criminal case, all of which involve the central claim that the mafia uses the term "86" to mean "kill." Turns out, Comey secured an affidavit from the world's foremost expert on mafia code words, and he thinks that argument is "preposterous." How do all of these fundamental mistakes keep making their way into criminal indictments? Comey is the latest defendant who thinks prosecutors may not have been entirely candid with grand juries. Trump v. IRS [SDFL Docket via CourtListener] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72207870/trump-v-internal-revenue-service/?filed_after=&filed_before=&entry_gte=&entry_lte=&order_by=asc   US v. Comey [docket via CourtListener] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73256624/united-states-v-comey/?order_by=desc   John Gleeson affidavit https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nced.227449/gov.uscourts.nced.227449.40.3.pdf Show Links: https://www.lawandchaospod.com/ BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPod Threads: @LawAndChaosPod Twitter: @LawAndChaosPod

    Ep 251 — You Whack The Guy, You Don't 86 Him

  4. Jul 31

    Ep 250 — Trump Corruption-palooza (Ft. Zach Everson)

    It's our semiquincentennial! And we're celebrating with a long-form interview with Zach Everson, research director of the Trump Accountability Project. Zach joins us to discuss how cryptocurrency powered Donald Trump's massively successful grift of billions of dollars, and what we can do about it. Along the way, we also discuss the proposed CLARITY ACT, and how the fake ethics provisions added by Republicans were so bad that the bill itself is likely to die on the vine.   Thank you for being with us for 250 episodes! CLARITY ACT- HR 3633 https://www.lummis.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/Clarity-Act.pdf Show Links: https://www.lawandchaospod.com/ BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPod Threads: @LawAndChaosPod Twitter: @LawAndChaosPod

    Ep 250 — Trump Corruption-palooza (Ft. Zach Everson)

  5. Jul 28

    Ep 249 — DHS Voter Lists?

    DOCKET ALERTS:   The Paramount-Warner Bros. merger is on hold well into next year. The parties stipulated that the merger would not go through pending trial in the antitrust case brought by twelve state AGs, despite massive financial penalties for Paramount if the deal is delayed. Meanwhile, the Writers Guild of America has filed a similar antitrust action, which has also been assigned to Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín.   Trump's newest tariff scheme, based on findings of anticompetitive use of forced labor by our trade competitors, drew multiple legal challenges. Learning Resources v. US, Take 3!    Fired US Attorney for the Western District of Washington, Roger Rogoff, is suing to get his job back.   MAIN SHOW:   In March, Trump put out an executive order instructing DHS to compile a list of voters. The states would then be forced to submit all mail-in ballot recipients to a portal and supply each with an individual bar code. The Post Office was instructed to refuse to deliver ballots to anyone not on the list. That order is now being litigated in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, the DC Circuit, the US District for Massachusetts, the First Circuit and, as of today, the Supreme Court.   James Comey has moved to dismiss the two-count federal indictment against him for posting an instagram photo of seashells that spelled out "8647." We discuss the "true threat" doctrine and the administration's larger war on freedom of speech when it comes to his critics and journalists.   Speaking of which, in the subscriber bonus, we discuss the case of Atlanta "Stop Cop City" protester Sam Tunick, who was charged with destroying evidence when he tricked CBP agents into bricking his phone. California v. Paramount-Skydance https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73606877/the-state-of-california-v-paramount-skydance-corporation/   Writers Guild of America, West, Inc. v. Paramount Skydance Corporation https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73614167/writers-guild-of-america-west-inc-v-paramount-skydance-corporation/   Fact Sheet: USTR Section 301 Action in Response to the Failure of 60 Economies to Ban Imports Produced with Forced Labor https://ustr.gov/about/policy-offices/press-office/fact-sheets/2026/july/fact-sheet-ustr-section-301-action-response-failure-60-economies-ban-imports-produced-forced-labor   Learning Resources v. US [Section 301 tariffs] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73668290/learning-resources-inc-v-the-united-states-of-america/   Burlap and Barrel v. Greer [Section 301 tariffs] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73667352/burlap-and-barrel-inc-v-greer-in-his-official-capacity-as-united-states/   Rogoff v. Trump https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73647676/rogoff-v-trump   California v. Trump [Mail-in ballots, First Circuit] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73568304/state-of-california-v-trump/?order_by=desc   League of Women Voters v. Trump [Mail-in ballots, D. Mass.] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73133197/league-of-women-voters-of-massachusetts-v-trump   NAACP v. US [Mail-in ballots, D.D.C.] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/17461792/national-association-for-the-advancement-of-colored-people-v-united-states   NAACP v. USPS [Mail-in ballots, DC Circuit] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73595574/naacp-v-usps/   Trump v. California [Mail-in ballots, SCOTUS] https://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=/docket/docketfiles/html/public\26a124.html   US v. Comey [North Carolina criminal indictment for 8647; docket via CourtListener] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73256624/united-states-v-comey/?order_by=desc   US v. Tunick [Georgia criminal indictment for bricked phone; docket via CourtListener] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71998357/united-states-v-tunick/ Show Links: https://www.lawandchaospod.com/ BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPod Threads: @LawAndChaosPod Twitter: @LawAndChaosPod

    Ep 249 — DHS Voter Lists?

  6. Jul 24

    Ep 248 — Tariff Man Returns

    DOCKET ALERTS:   After SecDef Hegseth ordered testosterone testing for all troops over 30 and offered hormone replacement therapy to all, Judge Ana Reyes ordered the government to explain how this is different from the healthcare for trans men which they just banned.    On Tuesday, a judge in Florida ordered Trump to turn over his financial records to the BBC in his defamation trollsuit. Turns out, when you say you've been damaged to the tune of a $10 billion, they make you show your work!   Every House Democrat signed a discharge petition to force a floor vote on Rep. Jamie Raskin's No Corrupt Agreements Requiring Taxpayer Expenditures Benefitting Lawbreakers and Assorted Non-Prosecution Covenants, Handouts, and Emoluments Act, AKA the NO CARTE BLANCHE Act.   MAIN SHOW:   After his first two attempts to steal Congress's tariff power were blocked in the courts, Trump has now reached back 90 years for the next tool. Sure the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act massively deepened and extended the Great Depression. But Trump is really mad at Canada, so maybe this time it won't massively backfire?   Meanwhile, the US Trade Representative announced a new wave of tariffs on 86 countries — putatively to retaliate against countries that sell or import goods created using child labor. Inflation is fun!   Nintendo is being sued by customers who bought Switch devices during the first round of illegal tariffs. They figure if the company is getting a refund from the government, they ought to get a refund from the company.   The FBI subpoenaed five New York Times journalists over reporting on the president's Qatari bribe jet. Claiming a national security emergency, the DOJ seized their phone records and demanded that they testify before a grand jury. This required prosecutors to disregard binding Second Circuit precedent and the DOJ's own published regulations — but Acting AG Todd Blanche said it was cool. At a hearing on Thursday over the motion to quash, Judge Arun Subramanian told the government to withdraw the subpoenas or he'd quash them. Eventually the DOJ agreed to withdraw, but now the court wants to know how the Justice Department came to tell so many whoppers to him, the magistrate, and opposing counsel.   Talbott v. Trump [Trans service members] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69583866/talbott-v-trump   Judge says Trump must hand over financial records to BBC https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/21/trum-bbc-lawsuit-finances   Trump v. BBC https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72040010/trump-v-british-broadcasting-corporation/   Raskin HR 7007 [No CARTE BLANCHE Act] https://democrats-judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/democrats-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/hr7007_ans.pdf   Ambassador Greer Issues Statement on President Trump Imposing Section 338 Tariffs on Canada https://ustr.gov/about/policy-offices/press-office/press-releases/2026/july/ambassador-greer-issues-statement-president-trump-imposing-section-338-tariffs-canada   Hoffert v. Nintendo [seeking consumer recovery of tariff refunds; docket via CourtListener] https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.wawd.361585/   Nintendo v. USA [seeking corporate IEEPA tariff refund; docket via CourtListener] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72373888/nintendo-of-america-inc-v-united-states-of-america/   CIT Rule 25-02 https://www.cit.uscourts.gov/sites/cit/files/Administrative%20Order%2025-02.pdf   CIT Rule 26-01 (July 13, 2026) https://www.cit.uscourts.gov/sites/cit/files/Administrative%20Order%2026-01.pdf   In re Grand Jury Subpoenas Dated July 10, 2026 https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73641399/in-re-grand-jury-subpoenas-dated-july-10-2026/   Show Links: https://www.lawandchaospod.com/ BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPod Threads: @LawAndChaosPod Twitter: @LawAndChaosPod

    Ep 248 — Tariff Man Returns

  7. Jul 21

    Ep 247 — They See Me Trollin'

    DOCKET ALERTS:   Minnesota passed the "Grandparents' Happy Hour" law making it legal to serve wine to grown adults in assisted living. Skol!   The DOJ's Civil Division got tossed out of court in Massachusetts because it failed to respond to a motion to dismiss its lawsuit over the state's refusal to issue undercover license plates to ICE.   Former Olympian David Hearn moved to dismiss the charge that he vandalized the Reflecting Pool since the government has drained the pool and is now destroying the evidence. Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín issued a temporary restraining order blocking the merger of Paramount and Warner Brothers in the antitrust case brought by California and eleven other states.   DOOFUS OF THE DAY: Senator Darline Graham Nordone who decided she'd like to be a real senator, not just a placeholder for her brother until the election. So now she's ditched her last name and gotten the nod from Trump.   MAIN SHOW:   Trump's defamation trollsuit against the BBC is going terribly. Who knew he'd have give discovery, not just take it? So now the DOJ is bigfooting in trying to save him.   There's a sealed proceeding in DC involving the Alien Terrorist Removal Court, a five-judge panel created in 1996 to hear secret cases against terrorists who need to be removed from the country immediately and without process. It has heard zero cases in the past 30 years, until last week, when the Trump administration tried to use it to deport someone without process. Is this a new ONE WEIRD TRICK the government will use to shove people out of the country?   Judge Todd Eddins of the Supreme Court of Hawai'i let loose on the Supreme Court for burning down democracy in an opinion interpreting the Due Process Clause in the state's constitution. State judges are not okay!   SUBSCRIBER BONUS:   Wired Magazine has published multiple stories about the massive data Madison Square Gardens collects on its patrons. The venue has filed a defamation lawsuit against Wired, its parent company Condé Nast, and journalists Noah Shachtman, Maddy Varner, and Katie Drummond. SLAPP-ity slap!   Andrew was a guest on the "Make It Make Sense" podcast with Grant Hermes.   Andrew's episode of Make It Make Sense https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-john-roberts-broke-the-supreme-court-this-term/id1756553746?i=1000777268503   US v. Massachusetts [Undercover plates] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73400637/united-states-v-the-commonwealth-of-massachusetts/   Hearn Motion to Dismiss https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/28498026-hearnmtd/   California v. Paramount-Skydance https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73606877/the-state-of-california-v-paramount-skydance-corporation/   Trump v. BBC https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72040010/trump-v-british-broadcasting-corporation/   Granillo v. Hawai'i https://www.courts.state.hi.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/SCWC-22-0000740.pdf   Granillo v. Hawaii [Supreme Court of Hawaii; majority opinion] chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.courts.state.hi.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/SCWC-22-0000740.pdf   Granillo v. Hawaii [Supreme Court of Hawaii; concurrence] https://www.courts.state.hi.us/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/SCWC-22-0000740con.pdf   Madison Square Gardens v. Advance Magazine Publishers [Wired/Shachtman] https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/nyscef/ViewDocument?docIndex=L6rt5/_PLUS_WLpjJoHCLRczc_PLUS_A==   Alien Terrorist Removal Court [docket 2026-TRC-1] https://www.atrc.uscourts.gov/docs/2026-TRC-1-Order.pdf   Show Links: https://www.lawandchaospod.com/ BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPod Threads: @LawAndChaosPod Twitter: @LawAndChaosPod

    Ep 247 — They See Me Trollin'

  8. Jul 17

    Ep 246 — Blanche and Buc-ee's

    DOCKET ALERTS:   This week, the Senate confirmed Jeffrey Kuntz as a judge in the Southern District of Florida, making him the second former Florida state jurist who did Trump a solid in his trollsuit against the Pulitzer Prize Board and got himself promoted to the federal bench. Also this week, the Senate confirmed Matthew Schwartz to the Second Circuit, making him the third of Trump's personal lawyers to be made appellate judges. This is fine!   The Trump administration sued Maryland to stop it providing in-state tuition to undocumented students.   Trump's media company plans to sell early access to his posts to high-frequency traders.    DOOFUS OF THE DAY:   Trump's teleprompter operator Gabriel Perez got caught betting on what his boss might say on Kalshi. He's negotiating a settlement with the CFTC, but is apparently still employed at the White House.   MAIN SHOW:   Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche had his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. Any Republican defection will tank his nomination to be permanent AG. He got raked over the coals and forced to sit down with the Epstein survivors, but will probably make it through.   The beloved service station Buc-ee's is suing everyone and their mother for trademark infringement. But the Buc-ee Beaver may have bitten off more than he can chew picking a fight with Mickey the Moose.   SUBSCRIBER BONUS:   In December, X/Twitter rolled out new image generation capabilities for its AI Grok, after which users created an avalanche of non-consensual intimate images. The site is facing a class action by minor victims. But it hopes to avoid liability by seeking a ruling from a friendly judge in Texas that the blame lies with the users who generated the images, not the site itself.   US v. Maryland [In-state tuition] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73629368/united-states-v-state-of-maryland/   White House teleprompter operator made more than $100K betting on Trump's speeches: Sources https://abcnews.com/US/white-house-teleprompter-operator-made-100k-betting-trumps/story?id=134764573   Trump Media to Sell Faster Access to President's Social Posts https://www.wsj.com/tech/trump-media-to-sell-faster-access-to-presidents-social-posts-7a7054e8   xAI LLC v. Harwood https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73616819/xai-llc-v-harwood/   Doe v. XAI Corp https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72495765/doe-1-v-xai-corp/   Buc-ee's is on a Rampage and No Mascot is Safe, Wall Street Journal https://www.wsj.com/us-news/law/buc-ees-is-on-a-rampage-and-no-mascot-is-safe-80b7f03d   Buc-ee's, Ltd. v. Coles IP Holdings, LLC [2026 docket] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72296862/buc-ees-ltd-v-coles-ip-holdings-llc/   Buc-ee's, Ltd. v. Panjwani [2015 docket] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72296862/buc-ees-ltd-v-coles-ip-holdings-llc/ Show Links: https://www.lawandchaospod.com/ BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPod Threads: @LawAndChaosPod Twitter: @LawAndChaosPod

    Ep 246 — Blanche and Buc-ee's
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Hosts & Guests

4.5
out of 5
414 Ratings

About

Ignorance of the law is no excuse! That's true for a traffic stop, and it's true if you want to participate in whatever's left of American democracy. If the events since the 2016 election taught us anything, it's that tuning out is not an option. Legal journalists Liz Dye and Andrew Torrez break down the week's most important courtroom stories, so you can keep on top of this crazy news cycle. Whether it's Texas giving two middle fingers to the Supreme Court, or Donald Trump in all the courts at once, we've got you covered.

Information

  • Creator
    Liz Dye; Andrew Torrez
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    253
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026
  • Show Website
    Law and Chaos

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