1. EachPod

Opening Arguments - Podcast

Opening Arguments

Opening Arguments is a law show that helps you make sense of the news! Comedian Thomas Smith brings on legal analysts to help you understand not only current events, but also deeper legal concepts and areas!
The typical schedule will be M-W-F with Monday being a deep-dive, Wednesday being Thomas Takes the Bar Exam and patron shoutouts, and Friday being a rapid response to legal issues in the news!

News Politics Law
Update frequency
every 2 days
Average duration
65 minutes
Episodes
1133
Years Active
2016 - 2025
Share to:
OA499: Mo Brooks Gets Served By Swalwell

OA499: Mo Brooks Gets Served By Swalwell

... and then goes on unhinged Twitter rant full of bad law! We're here to break down just how obviously spurious his allegations are. Then, we address the tremendous amount of feedback we got on Chr…

01:14:03  |   Tue 15 Jun 2021
OA498: The Garland DoJ Coverage is Completely Wrong

OA498: The Garland DoJ Coverage is Completely Wrong

This episode is exactly why this show exists. Two stories about Merrick Garland's DoJ came out recently that gave the strong impression that Garland was defending Trump policies and even joining fo…

01:11:57  |   Fri 11 Jun 2021
OA497: Christian Health Sharing Is a Scam

OA497: Christian Health Sharing Is a Scam

Andrew stumbled across a Marketwatch article that recommended a Christian Health Sharing company to save money on health insurance. Due to this being a complete scam, Andrew was sent on a Liam Neeso…

01:15:07  |   Tue 08 Jun 2021
OA496: Stanford Law Forgets How Law Works

OA496: Stanford Law Forgets How Law Works

First story on today's show is the Chauvin motion for downward departure. The Judge said up to 30 years, Chauvin countered with "...how about a firm talking-to?" Andrew breaks down the (mostly terr…

01:04:18  |   Fri 04 Jun 2021
OA495: Mr. Fish Goes to Washington

OA495: Mr. Fish Goes to Washington

Today we have special guest Nick Fish, president of American Atheists! He recently attended a meeting with the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. Is this administration doi…

01:16:17  |   Tue 01 Jun 2021
OA494: Florida's Pointless, Unconstitutional Social Media Law

OA494: Florida's Pointless, Unconstitutional Social Media Law

I know I say this a lot but... this episode is action packed! So much good stuff to discuss that we had to squeeze in the Trump grand jury news into the announcements slot. Andrew breaks down what i…

01:13:38  |   Fri 28 May 2021
OA493: Is Fox News Guilty of Defamation? We Report, You Decide!

OA493: Is Fox News Guilty of Defamation? We Report, You Decide!

Today Andrew breaks down Fox's motion to dismiss the Dominion lawsuit. Dominion has mountains of evidence of defamation. Fox... disagREES. Find out how their defense holds up! We also talk about the…

01:15:34  |   Tue 25 May 2021
OA492: Court Locks Mississippi Citizens Out of Amending Their Own Constitution

OA492: Court Locks Mississippi Citizens Out of Amending Their Own Constitution

This is not a misleading clickbait headline, this is literally what happened. Mississippi citizens passed a medical marijuana amendment and textualist conservative judges overruled it with a reading…

01:08:28  |   Fri 21 May 2021
OA491: Letitia James – Kicking Ass and Taking Names

OA491: Letitia James – Kicking Ass and Taking Names

And two of those names are: Jacob Wohl and the NRA! It's a consequences show! While consequences might be an endangered species these days, Tish James shows us that species still has teeth. You may …

01:09:16  |   Tue 18 May 2021
OA490: Chauvin Sentencing – Four Aggravating Factors

OA490: Chauvin Sentencing – Four Aggravating Factors

Big updates in the Derek Chauvin case! First, the judge found four aggravating factors. This is what Andrew predicted, but not exactly the same four! Also, one of the other officers in the case has …

01:03:59  |   Fri 14 May 2021
OA489: Transformers and Intellectual Property

OA489: Transformers and Intellectual Property

Andrew is giggling like a school child right now as we present the deep-dive you didn't know you needed! It's transform...ing robots (not quite Transformers) and some really intricate IP law! It als…

01:18:24  |   Tue 11 May 2021
OA488: A New Trial for Chauvin?

OA488: A New Trial for Chauvin?

You may have seen some alarming headlines about Chauvin's lawyers asking for a new trial over a juror being at a BLM rally, but do those alarming headlines hold up? Should we be concerned? Andrew ha…

01:05:21  |   Fri 07 May 2021
OA487: How To Overturn Citizens United

OA487: How To Overturn Citizens United

All-star Senator Sheldon Whitehouse is at it again! In a Judiciary subcommittee meeting, Whitehouse laid out the groundwork for how a future Supreme Court could overturn Citizens United and Shelby C…

01:16:57  |   Tue 04 May 2021
OA486: Apportionment Might NOT Be Final

OA486: Apportionment Might NOT Be Final

You all probably heard by now that NY lost a House seat by 89 people... But did they? Andrew argues that this has been misreported. Find out why! Along the way, find out way more than you ever wante…

01:10:07  |   Fri 30 Apr 2021
OA485: What If Your Client Tells You They're Guilty?

OA485: What If Your Client Tells You They're Guilty?

... and other great questions from listeners! We get so many intelligent, thoughtful questions from our amazing listeners and patrons that we decided to do a show about it! Today's episode features …

01:10:23  |   Tue 27 Apr 2021
OA484: Chauvin Guilty! What To Expect Next

OA484: Chauvin Guilty! What To Expect Next

It's good news! Chauvin was found guilty on all 3 counts! Andrew breaks down what to expect with sentencing, and a number of interesting legal quirks along the way. Also, should we be worried about …

01:12:17  |   Fri 23 Apr 2021
OA483: SCOTUS Grants Absurd Privilege to Churches in New Ruling

OA483: SCOTUS Grants Absurd Privilege to Churches in New Ruling

Andrew Seidel of the FFRF joins us to discuss the absolutely terrible SCOTUS decision in Tandon v. Newsom. As you might expect, it's a complete disgrace that further enshrines Christian Privilege in…

01:11:38  |   Tue 20 Apr 2021
OA482: Justice for Daunte Wright

OA482: Justice for Daunte Wright

Officer Kim Potter was charged with 2nd Degree Manslaughter in the killing of Daunte Wright. She claims she meant to fire her taser. Could she face more serious charges? Then, Andrew breaks down Mar…

01:10:56  |   Fri 16 Apr 2021
OA481: Sanctions Motion Obliterates Sidney Powell

OA481: Sanctions Motion Obliterates Sidney Powell

Governor Tony Evers is not messing around when it comes to Sidney Powell's evidence-free conspiracy nonsense. He has filed a motion for sanctions that just demolishes Powell for being a total hack, …

01:13:31  |   Tue 13 Apr 2021
OA480: Why Both Sides of the Chauvin Trial Cite Graham v. Connor

OA480: Why Both Sides of the Chauvin Trial Cite Graham v. Connor

Today's show has everything you want from an OA episode! We start with some follow-up on the Originalism episodes. Second is a fascinating mini dive into Graham v. Connor and why both the defense an…

01:06:53  |   Fri 09 Apr 2021
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are the property of Opening Arguments Media LLC. This content is not affiliated with or endorsed by eachpod.com.