Unpublished Opinions 1 | Swing More Freely

Welcome to Short Circuit’s new podcast! In this free ranging side of the Center for Justice Engagement we welcome two Institute for Justice attorneys, Anya Bidwell and Patrick Jaicomo, to discuss what’s on their legal minds. Although we won’t be doing this every podcast, given its name we can’t help but begin by ranting about unpublished opinions. Why are they “unpublished” again? And perhaps that made sense at one point but in the age of the Internet, is that really true anymore? The gang chew the fat on this topic but also how it relates to qualified immunity and the relatively new dispute over whether “precedent” is the same thing as “clearly established.” Then we muse on the new Supreme Court, under the old adage that whenever the Court’s membership changes there’s a whole new “court.” There’s a focus on the dynamics of oral argument and how there’s a lot more talking at 1 First Street these days. We also throw a football down the field for Justice Byron White.

Case where Judge Oldman talks about precedent

Draft en banc article