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!
- Update frequency
- every 2 days
- Average duration
- 65 minutes
- Episodes
- 1132
- Years Active
- 2016 - 2025
OA210: Cash Bail, Glucksburg and More
Today's episode takes two deep dives: first, into California SB10, which eliminates the "cash bail" system of pretrial detention in California, and second, into the Supreme Court's 1997 decision in …
01:21:32 |
Tue 18 Sep 2018
OA209: Kavanaugh's Confirmation
Today's Rapid Response Friday is all about the conclusion of the Supreme Court Confirmation Hearings for Brett Kavanaugh. What did we learn? What's still outstanding? Are liberals really guilty of…
01:21:56 |
Fri 14 Sep 2018
OA208: Moore is Still Less
Today's episode takes a deep dive into a 2003 Supreme Court decision, Stogner v. California, and discusses the Constitution's ex post facto clause. Why? Listen and find out! After that, we break do…
01:03:23 |
Tue 11 Sep 2018
OA207: Brett Kavanaugh's Confirmation Hearings
Today's Rapid Response Friday tackles the ongoing Supreme Court Confirmation Hearings for Brett Kavanaugh -- including an analysis of documents that broke literally after we recorded the show! Find …
01:15:36 |
Fri 07 Sep 2018
OA206: Will This ONE WEIRD TRICK Unravel the Mueller Investigation?
Today's episode takes us back to Yodel Mountain, where we take a look at a popular article making the rounds suggesting that (you guessed it) this ONE WEIRD TRICK might unravel the entire Mueller inv…
01:13:58 |
Tue 04 Sep 2018
OA205: More on Masterpiece, Younger & the Catholic Church (w/guest Andrew Seidel)
Today's episode tackles two big church/state separation stories currently circulating right now: the recent lawsuit filed by the owner of the Masterpiece Cakeshop, and the Pennsylvania grand jury i…
01:08:42 |
Fri 31 Aug 2018
OA204: The Perjury Trap (w/guest Randall Eliason)
Today's episode welcomes back one of our favorite guest experts, former prosecutor and current law professor Randall Eliason of the Sidebars blog, who will help us break down what exactly a "perjury …
01:17:39 |
Tue 28 Aug 2018
OA203: Paul Manafort Convicted, Michael Cohen Pleads
Today's extra-long, extra-early Rapid Response episode tackles the two biggest stories in the news right now: Paul Manafort's conviction, and Michael Cohen's plea deal. We tell you exactly what the…
01:28:37 |
Thu 23 Aug 2018
OA202: Roundup (With Special Guest the SciBabe!)
Today's episode takes an in-depth look at the recent $289 million dollar verdict handed down by a California state jury for a man who alleges that the herbicide Roundup (TM) gave him cancer. First, w…
01:06:22 |
Tue 21 Aug 2018
OA201: Follow Up Friday!
Today's Rapid Response Friday is actually a Follow Up Friday! We revisit four stories from recent episodes and go into more depth on each one, particularly in light of recent developments. We begin …
01:14:35 |
Fri 17 Aug 2018
OA200: Reporters and Confidential Sources
Today's episode takes an in-depth look at the legal protections reporters have (and don't have) to keep their sources confidential. We begin, however, with an update on how "Elections Have Consequenc…
01:15:58 |
Tue 14 Aug 2018
OA199: Asbestos??!? (Or: Why Is This Man Smiling?)
Note: the SaneBox url in this episode is incorrect. Please go to https://www.sanebox.com/opening to take advantage of a great deal on their product! Today's Rapid Response Friday breaks down everythi…
01:15:21 |
Fri 10 Aug 2018
OA198: What Is Alan Dershowitz Thinking?
Today's episode takes an in-depth look at Donald Trump's favorite "liberal," Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz as seen through the eyes of one of his former students. We begin, however, with an u…
01:27:30 |
Tue 07 Aug 2018
OA197: Undetectable, Untraceable, 3-D Printed Guns
Today's Rapid Response Friday breaks down all of the legal wrangling regarding the Trump Administration's secret settlement with a self-described "crypto-anarchist" who uploaded material that allows …
01:12:38 |
Fri 03 Aug 2018
OA196: Voting and Sore Losers
Today's episode tells you everything you need to know about voting, including in particular West Virginia's "Sore Loser" law and whether it applies to big fat racist criminal loser Don Blankenship...…
01:00:46 |
Tue 31 Jul 2018
OA195: Lordy, There Are Tapes!
Today's Rapid Response Friday breaks down all of a busy week's developments in the Trump Administration's trip up Yodel Mountain, including the surprising revelation that Michael Cohen has audio tape…
01:25:33 |
Fri 27 Jul 2018
OA194: Paul Manafort is Going to Trial! (& McDonald's!)
Today's episode tells you everything you need to know before Paul Manafort's trial in the Eastern District of Virginia, which begins Wednesday, July 25, 2018. Oh, and we break down the recent lawsui…
01:28:20 |
Tue 24 Jul 2018
OA193: This Is Worse Than Watergate - PLUS Mandalay Bay Suing Victims?
Today's Rapid Response Friday breaks down the recent lawsuit filed by the Mandalay Bay casino regarding the 2017 Las Vegas shooting. Is it true that the casino is suing the victims? What's that all…
01:30:47 |
Fri 20 Jul 2018
OA192: Capital Punishment, the Eighth Amendment &... Obergefell?
Today's episode takes an in-depth historical look at the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on "cruel and unusual punishment" and what that might mean for the future of Obergefell v. Hodges in the next S…
01:11:26 |
Tue 17 Jul 2018
OA191: Fact and Fiction About Brett Kavanaugh
Today's Rapid Response Friday does not take a victory lap about our successful prediction that Brett Kavanaugh would be Donald Trump's next nominee to the Supreme Court (but seriously, we called that…
01:20:59 |
Fri 13 Jul 2018
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