Stanford Legal cover art
Podcast · 44 episodes

Stanford Legal, page 2

by Stanford Law School · English

Law touches most aspects of life. Here to help make sense of it is the Stanford Legal podcast, where we look at the cases, questions, conflicts, and legal stories that affect us all every day. Pam Karlan studies and teaches a range of constitutional law-related courses with a special focus on what is known as the “law of democracy,”—the law that regulates voting, elections, and the political process. She served as a commissioner on the California Fair Political Practices Commission, an assistant counsel and cooperating attorney for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, and (twice) as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. She also co-directs the Stanford Supreme Court Litigation Clinic, which represents real clients before the highest court in the country, working on important cases including representing Edith Windsor in the landmark case striking down the federal Defense of Marriage Act and Donald Zarda in a case where the Supreme Court held that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects LGBT individuals against discrimination in employment. She has argued before the Court ten times. And Rich Ford’s teaching and writing look at the relationship between law and equality, cities and urban development, popular culture and everyday life. He teaches local government law, employment discrimination, and the often-misunderstood critical race theory. He studied with and advised governments around the world on questions of equality law, lectured at places like the Sorbonne in Paris on the relationship of law and popular culture, served as a commissioner for the San Francisco Housing Commission, and worked with cities on how to manage neighborhood change and volatile real estate markets. He writes about law and popular culture for lawyers, academics, and popular audiences. His latest book is Dress Codes: How the Laws of Fashion Made History, a legal history of the rules and laws that influence what we wear. Law matters. We hope you’ll listen to new episodes that will drop on Thursdays every two weeks. To learn more, go to https://law.stanford.edu/stanford-legal-podcast/.

All episodes, page 2

Trump's Immigration Raids and State PushbackThe episode examines Trump’s second-term immigration enforcement inside the U.S.—including ICE/CBP raids in cities like Minneapolis, Portland, and Los Angeles—arguing that historically low…19 Mar 2026 · 36 min · 17 chapters
Stanford’s Alan Sykes on the Future of Trump’s Tariffs After the IEEPA CaseA podcast that explores cases, questions, conflicts, and legal stories that impact everyday life.3 Mar 2026 · 31 min · 13 chapters
A Seismic Shift in Climate LawThis episode discusses the recent announcement by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding the rescission of the 2009 endangerment finding, a critical legal foundation for federal…24 Feb 2026 · 31 min · 14 chapters
Inside the ACLU’s Docket: Anthony Romero on the Front Lines of Civil RightsIn this episode, Pam Karlan speaks with Anthony Romero, Executive Director of the ACLU, discussing the critical civil rights and civil liberties challenges the organization faces.19 Feb 2026 · 35 min · 17 chapters
The Importance of Critical Thinking and Civil Discourse in Today's Polarized WorldIn this episode, Stanford Law professor Robert MacCoun discusses the need for critical reflection and civil discourse amidst growing polarization.5 Feb 2026 · 32 min · 20 chapters
How Democracies Collapse from WithinIn this episode, Professor Pam Karlan interviews Professor Kim Scheppele, a leading expert on constitutional democracy and democratic failure.22 Jan 2026 · 36 min · 16 chapters
Flexing U.S. Power in VenezuelaThe episode argues the U.S. use of force against Venezuela to arrest President Nicolás Maduro (and his wife) would violate international law, specifically UN Charter Article 2(4), and discusses…8 Jan 2026 · 30 min · 14 chapters
Best of Stanford Legal: Trump's PardonsStanford Legal episode “Best of Stanford Legal: Trump’s Pardons” discusses Trump’s early-2025 clemency for January 6, 2021 Capitol rioters, linking it to political violence, hate groups, and attempts…29 Dec 2025 · 31 min · 13 chapters
Best of Stanford Legal: Suing DOGEStanford Legal “Best of Stanford Legal: Suing DOGE” discusses a Privacy Act lawsuit challenging the U.S.22 Dec 2025 · 29 min · 13 chapters
Nationwide Injunctions After CASAThe episode explains Trump v. Casa (June 2026), which addressed whether federal courts may issue nationwide (“universal”) injunctions.11 Dec 2025 · 44 min · 25 chapters
Crime, Justice, and Trump’s DOJHow U.S. criminal sentencing has shifted between rehabilitation and punishment, and what “Trump’s DOJ” changes mean for sentencing reform and the role of career lawyers.14 Nov 2025 · 34 min · 20 chapters
Navigating Uncertainty and Unprecedented Shifts in Federal Health PolicyThe episode argues that recent federal health policy has become “chaotic” and less evidence-based due to unprecedented personnel changes at HHS and the hollowing out of federal public-health…6 Nov 2025 · 32 min · 17 chapters
National Guard or Political Weapon?Whether President Trump’s federalization of the National Guard under the Insurrection Act to support ICE immigration enforcement in cities (notably Los Angeles and Illinois’s “Operation Midway…30 Oct 2025 · 31 min · 19 chapters
Political Enemies and the Weaponization of the DOJHow DOJ indictments against James Comey and New York AG Letitia James may reflect “vindictive” or “selective” prosecution, including unusual grand-jury procedures and possible political interference.16 Oct 2025 · 30 min · 9 chapters
President Trump’s Tariffs and the Separation of Powers at the Supreme CourtThe episode explains a legal challenge to President Trump’s tariffs, focusing on whether the International Economic Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA) can authorize tariff-like taxes under an “unusual and…3 Oct 2025 · 36 min · 16 chapters
Guns, Money, and Mass ShootingsHow mass shootings affect gun-policy politics, focusing on strategic campaign donations by gun-right interest groups and gun-safety groups, and why Congress often fails to pass widely supported…15 Sep 2025 · 31 min · 17 chapters
U.S. Risking its Scientific Research Edge?The episode argues the U.S. is undermining its federal research “edge” by (1) canceling already-peer-reviewed grants tied to disfavored topics (e.g., DEI, vaccine hesitancy/misinformation, climate…21 Aug 2025 · 31 min · 22 chapters
Redrawing DemocracyHow U.S. districting law and technology enable increasingly sophisticated gerrymandering, what “one person, one vote” requires, and what 2025–2030 litigation (race and partisan) could…5 Aug 2025 · 44 min · 19 chapters
Trump’s Executive Orders, Culture Wars, and Civil RightsThe episode examines Trump-era executive orders—especially “Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy”—that reject the anti-discrimination legal doctrine of disparate impact, and argues the…25 Jul 2025 · 33 min · 13 chapters
Can the Rule of Law Hold?The episode argues that recent Trump administration changes to the U.S.10 Jul 2025 · 36 min · 15 chapters