Supreme Court Brief
by Law.com
Go inside the latest SCOTUS cases! From cert to decision, Supreme Court reporter Jimmy Hoover breaks down the cases shaping business, policy, and precedent at the nation's highest court. Each week, he'll bring clarity to the Court's most consequential cases, as well as conduct interviews with expert guests on the biggest issues facing the Court today. A must-listen for litigators, firm leaders, firms with business before the Court, and anyone fascinated by the judiciary.
Episodes
-
54 Years Of Arguing Before The Supreme Court
On this week's episode of Supreme Court Brief, Jimmy interviews University of Washington School of Law Professor Eric Schnapper, who will argue his latest Supreme Court case Monday, fifty-four years after his debut at the high court in 1974 before Chief Justice Warren Burger and others. Schnapper...
-
Supreme Court Will Review Ban On Home Liquor Stills
On this week's episode, Law.com reporters Jimmy Hoover and Alyssa Aquino break down the latest week in Supreme Court news, from an emergency order blocking Trump's gender-care ban for trans prisoners to the latest cases added to this term's merits docket. Those include whether the 160-year-old...
-
How The Supreme Court Preserves Authority By Not Using It
On this week's episode, Supreme Court reporter Jimmy Hoover interviews law professor Neil Siegel about his latest scholarship on how the Supreme Court practices judicial self-preservation to mitigate conflicts with the Trump administration. Plus, Jimmy breaks down a new DOGE case set to be argued...
-
Supreme Court Grapples With Wave Of State Climate Suits
On the first day of the October 2026 term Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court confronted a wave of new state climate lawsuits against the fossil fuel industry. Law.com reporters Jimmy Hoover and Alyssa Aquino discuss the justices' tough questions for energy giants Exxon Mobil and Suncor as they seek…
more -
A New Term Brings Cases On Climate, Guns And Voting
The start of the October 2026 term is almost here, bringing major cases on climate change lawsuits, the Second Amendment and voting rights. Listen as Supreme Court reporter Jimmy Hoover and co-host Alyssa Aquino break down the top issues to watch in this special preview episode of Supreme Court...
-
Emergency Docket Heats Up With Election Disputes
This week on Supreme Court Brief, Jimmy recaps the latest developments on the Supreme Court's emergency docket concerning the November midterms. Plus, Supreme Court lawyer Dan Geyser joins the show to discuss his new firm's SCOTUS practice and how to navigate the court's shrinking merits docket....
-
Can AI Predict The Outcome Of Supreme Court Cases?
On this week's episode, Jimmy interviews University of Oklahoma Law Professor Hayley Stillwell about her recent experiments using various AI tools to try to predict the outcome of Supreme Court cases. While broadly accurate, the tools often failed to anticipate areas of consensus among the…
more -
Supreme Court Approval Plummets To Record Low After Rulings
Just one in three Americans approve of the job the Supreme Court is doing, the lowest figure on record. Gallup senior editor Jeff Jones joins Supreme Court Brief host Jimmy Hoover to discuss the group's latest findings, and what's behind the court's sinking reputation. Host: Jimmy Hoover Guest:...
-
Trump Suffers Big Losses Even As Court Delivers Conservative Victories
On this episode of Supreme Court Brief, Jimmy Hoover interviews law professor Ilya Somin about his big takeaways from the October 2025 term, which served up several conservative wins across a range of areas, even as the court distanced itself from some of President Donald Trump's more…
more -
Supreme Court Brings An End To Human Rights Lawsuits Under Centuries-Old Law
interviews University of Chicago Law School Professor Curtis Bradley about the court's recent rulings in Cisco Systems v. Doe I and Exxon Mobil v. Corporacion Cimex. Bradley, a well-known international legal scholar, explains how the Cisco decision spells the end of lawsuits from foreign…
more -
Supreme Court Says Smoking Weed No Grounds For Gun Prosecution
This week on Supreme Court Brief, Jimmy breaks down Thursday's unanimous decision barring prosecutions of recreational marijuana users for gun possession—a major victory for weed and gun rights advocates alike. Also this episode: Law.com litigation reporter Alyssa Aquino returns to the show to...
-
Key SEC Tool Survives Supreme Court Review
This week, a breakdown of the Supreme Court's unanimous decision in Sripetch v. SEC, upholding the regulator's power to order disgorgement from fraudsters in insider trading and other complex fraud cases with no easily identifiable victims. Jimmy interviews Law.com and New York Law Journal...
-
Are Workers Having A Good Supreme Court Term?
On this week's episode of Supreme Court Brief, Jimmy speaks with Jennifer Bennett of Gupta Wessler on recent Supreme Court rulings in favor of workers, including her unanimous victory last week on behalf of a last-mile delivery driver in Colorado. Also, Jimmy breaks down the latest action from…
more -
Cruise Lines In Deep Water Over Cuba Trips, Immigration Judges Lose Suit
On this episode of Supreme Court Brief, Jimmy updates listeners about a recent decision from the Supreme Court exposing four major cruise lines to $110 million judgments for docking at Havana during a thaw in U.S.-Cuba relations. Plus, a look at the court's summary reversal ending a suit by...
-
Jeff Wall On Joining 'The Yankees' Of Appellate Bar, And Why Emergency Docket Is 'Here To Stay'
On this week's episode of Supreme Court Brief, Jimmy interviews Jeff Wall, who recently joined the law firm Gibson Dunn & Crutcher from Sullivan & Cromwell. Wall talks about his time in the U.S. solicitor general's office and what he hopes to accomplish at his new firm, which he described as the...
-
Supreme Court Faces Last-Minute Midterm Battles
On this week's episode, Jimmy breaks down the latest election disputes to hit the Supreme Court's docket, including a last-ditch effort from Virginia Democrats to preserve the states new voter-approved map giving them five additional House seats. Plus, Jimmy talks through the Supreme Court's two...
-
Alito, Jackson Spar As 'Emotions Bubble To Surface' Over Voting Rights
On this week's episode, Jimmy does a deep-dive on the Supreme Court's recent decision weakening the Voting Rights Act with UCLA Law Professor Rick Hasen, who explains why the case has left the justices' emotions "bubbling up to the surface." That was most evident from an extraordinary clash…
more -
Justices Deliver Blow To Minority Voting Representation
On this week's episode, Jimmy breaks down Wednesday's decision in Louisiana v. Callais delivering a major blow to Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. In an ideologically split-6-3 ruling, the court largely prohibited states from intentionally boosting minority voting representation through the...
-
Facing Leaks, Supreme Court Moves Forward With Arguments And New Cases
On this week's episode of Supreme Court Brief, host Jimmy Hoover touches on the recent leak of internal memos from a 2016 Supreme Court case, and previews an important First Amendment case set to be heard next term. This week's guest is Law.com and New York Law Journal reporter Alyssa Aquino, who...
-
When Not On Bench, Justices Jet-Setting Around Globe
This week on Supreme Court Brief, host Jimmy Hoover interviews Gabe Roth, the head of the judicial watchdog group, Fix the Court. They discuss Roth's latest findings about the justices' overseas travel activities from a Freedom of Information Act request to the U.S. State Department, documents…
more -
With Trump In Attendance, Justices Question Birthright Citizenship Restrictions
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Wednesday on the constitutionality of President Donald Trump's efforts to restrict birthright citizenship, a hearing in which the president himself was in attendance. Joining host Jimmy Hoover to break down the arguments is former New Jersey Attorney General...
-
Mail Voting, Asylum Claims And Big Win For Internet Providers
On this episode, Jimmy breaks down this week's oral arguments in major cases about the deadline for mail ballots, along with the ability of migrants to petition for asylum at the southern border. This week's guest is Saurabh Vishnubhakat, an intellectual property professor at Cardozo Law who…
more -
Supreme Court To Hear Major Case Over Mail Ballots
On this week's episode, a look at a major Supreme Court case set to be heard Monday that could upend mail ballot laws in over a dozen states. Host Jimmy Hoover interviews law professor Michael Morley of Florida State University's Election Law Center about the central issues in the case. Also this...
-
Guns, Weed And Ayahuasca: Supreme Court Hears Major Second Amendment Case
This week on Supreme Court Brief, host Jimmy Hoover interviews Second Amendment scholar Haley Proctor on Monday's hearing about the constitutionality of the federal gun ban for drug users. The hearing featured colorful hypotheticals about ayahuasca users, weed gummies and the drinking habit of…
more -
Trump Loses Big On Tariffs, But Vows To Fight On. What Now?
On this episode of Supreme Court Brief, Jimmy recaps an action-packed week at the court, highlighting a major new environmental case, a unanimous decision against an ICE contractor, and four justices' "night out" at President Donald Trump's state of the union address. Later on, Jimmy interviews...
-
Can AI Give You A Seat Inside The Supreme Court?
On this episode, Jimmy interviews one of the creators of a new project that seeks to use artificial intelligence to create videos of the Supreme Court justices reading their opinions from the bench. The project, called "On The Docket," features strikingly lifelike visuals of AI-depicted readings…
more -
The Elite Lawyers Dominating The Supreme Court's Docket
On this week's episode, Jimmy highlights new data revealing the incredible success that a small group of elite lawyers are having in taking their cases to the Supreme Court, and what it tells us about who gets to influence the direction of U.S. law. Law professors Tracey George, Mitu Gulati, and...
-
Why A Recent MedMal Ruling Could Spell Bad News For The Media
On this episode of Supreme Court Brief, host Jimmy Hoover interviews defamation lawyer Travis Chance on why a recent medical malpractice ruling from the Supreme Court could make it harder for news organizations to defeat frivolous libel lawsuits. Host: Jimmy Hoover Guest: Travis Chance Producer:...
-
Why Are Prisoner Appeals Vanishing At The Supreme Court?
On this episode of Supreme Court Brief, Jimmy interviews criminal defense attorney and Supreme Court advocate Jeff Green on the stark drop in the number of appeals being filed by indigent prisoners at the court, and how it could affect the development of the criminal law. Host: Jimmy Hoover…
more -
Justices Troubled By Trump's Attempt To Fire Fed Governor
On this episode of Supreme Court Brief, host Jimmy Hoover breaks down Wednesday's blockbuster hearing on whether President Donald Trump may fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. Joining the program to discuss her original scholarship into "for cause" removal protections is legal historian Jane...
-
Supreme Court Debates Trans Athlete Laws, SCOTUS Lawyers Embracing AI
On this episode of Supreme Court Brief, host Jimmy Hoover summarizes Tuesday's oral arguments over state laws that prohibit trans student athletes from competing in women's and girls' sports. Later, Jimmy interviews Supreme Court lawyer Adam Unikowsky on the promise and peril of using AI to...
-
Birthright Citizenship And 'The Dog That Didn't Bark
On this episode, host Jimmy Hoover interviews law scholar Amanda Frost about her latest research on the original understanding of the Fourteenth Amendment's citizenship clause, and how it calls into question President Donald Trump's attempt to deny birthright citizenship to the children of...
-
Why It's So Hard To Hold ICE Agents Accountable
On this episode of Supreme Court Brief, host Jimmy Hoover interviews the lawyer for George Retes, a U.S. citizen and veteran who was detained for three days by ICE following an immigration raid in California. Institute for Justice attorney Marie Miller explains how the Supreme Court's rulings…
more -
Former FTC Chief On What Justices Got Wrong About 'Independent Agencies'
On today's episode of Supreme Court Brief, host Jimmy Hoover takes an inside look at Monday's blockbuster hearing on the fate of independent federal agencies and how it could vastly expand the powers of the presidency. Plus: a breakdown of Tuesday's arguments on the constitutionality of a…
more -
Harvard Law Professor On The 'Realignment' Of Conservative And Liberal Justices
On today's episode of Supreme Court Brief, host Jimmy Hoover breaks down the latest highlights from the courtroom as the justices considered copyright liability for internet service providers, and a pro-life group's civil rights lawsuit over a Democratic attorney general's subpoena. Today's guest...
-
Supreme Court Reviewing Gun Restrictions For Private Property, Drug Use
On this episode of Supreme Court Brief, host Jimmy Hoover interviews Second Amendment scholar Haley Proctor of Notre Dame Law School on the major gun cases to be decided during the 2025-2026 term. Plus, a look at the court's decision this week to take up a case about the right of immigrants…
more -
The 'Enormous Shift' That Explains Trump's Supreme Court Victories
On this week's episode of Supreme Court Brief, host Jimmy Hoover discusses the court's intervention in a battle over food stamp benefits, new briefing over President Donald Trump's efforts to deploy the National Guard, and oral arguments in the case of a Rastafarian prisoner who was forcibly…
more -
Breaking Down The Supreme Court's Arguments On Tariffs
On this edition of Supreme Court Brief, Jimmy analyzes Wednesday's lengthy hearing over the fate of President Donald Trump's tariffs, arguably the keystone economic policy of his second term. This weeks guest is Law.com litigation reporter Alyssa Aquino, who has closely followed the tariff cases...
-
Will Supreme Court Treat Trump Tariffs Like Biden Policies?
On today's episode of Supreme Court Brief, Jimmy updates listeners on a significant development in the case over whether President Donald Trump can deploy the National Guard to Chicago. In an unusual order Wednesday, the court signaled that it is unlikely to take any action in the case until at...
-
Supreme Court Weighing Fate of Independent Agencies
On today's episode of Supreme Court Brief from Law.com, host Jimmy Hoover provides an overview of a major new Second Amendment case to be decided this term and breaks down the latest emergency case over President Trump's deployment of the National Guard to Chicago. Later on, Supreme Court lawyer...
-
How Originalism Went From 'Fringe' Theory To Supreme Court Credo
On today's episode of Supreme Court Brief from Law.com, host Jimmy Hoover breaks down the Supreme Court's Wednesday oral arguments in Louisiana v. Callais, involving a major challenge to the Supreme Court's Voting Rights Act cases. Jimmy explains why, following Wednesday's hearing, the Supreme...
-
Erwin Chemerinsky On How This Supreme Court Term Will Shape The Power Of The Presidency
On the inaugural episode of Supreme Court Brief, constitutional law scholar and dean of Berkeley Law School Erwin Chemerinsky discusses the upcoming October 2025 term, which kicked off on Monday. Erwin explains how the Supreme Court will be considering cases that could shape the power of the...
About this show
Go inside the latest SCOTUS cases! From cert to decision, Supreme Court reporter Jimmy Hoover breaks down the cases shaping business, policy, and precedent at the nation's highest court. Each week, he'll bring clarity to the Court's most consequential cases, as well as conduct interviews with expert guests on the biggest issues facing the Court today. A must-listen for litigators, firm leaders, firms with business before the Court, and anyone fascinated by the judiciary.
Hosted by
Law.com
Categories