Too Many Lawyers goes beyond the headlines about laws and court cases to tell listeners what developments in the law really mean, and how the stories impact real people. The hosts are each lawyers and legal analysts, but beyond that couldn’t be more different. One, Royal Oakes, is a libertarian, baby boomer and dad, who’s been offering analysis on network radio and television for decades; the other, Connor Oakes, is a progressive millennial and son of Royal Oakes, who offers a fresh take on the legal world. TML knows what podcast listeners want to hear about, and delivers – subjects include:--- Should America embrace Pete Buttigieg’s view, legalization of every drug, from grass, to meth, to heroin?--- Should the feds be bumping the tobacco purchase age to 21?--- Can we trust Twitter and Facebook to censor political opinions?--- Your devices are spying on you – should you go through life not trusting Alexa?--- The gig economy – do laws saying everybody with a side hustle is an “employee” help, or hurt?--- Should colleges be dumping SAT and ACT tests as a tool to fight discrimination? --- How can governments regulate “ghost guns” made by 3-D printers?--- Is facial recognition just another tool like fingerprints, or does it spell the end of privacy?--- Should Amazon face lawsuits for sales of unsafe products, when they just collect a slice as middleperson?
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The COVID culture wars may dictate the outcome of the presidential election. Will “stay shut” or “re-open America” work in November? General Flynn puts the champagne on ice. And, California’s Governor isn’t letting a good crisis go to waste. He’s closing two prisons and cutting parole to just one year.
General Flynn had a good week. Not sure he’d trade it for the very bad three years he’s just gone through. Tara Reade won’t go away, she announced Joe Biden should drop out of the race. Some feminists are saying, you know what – I believe her – but I’m voting for Biden anyway. And the Supreme Court goes modern, with remote oral arguments.
It was a big week for Joe Biden – he tried to put assault allegations to rest, but did he put “hashtag believe women” out of business? SCOTUS came through big time for health insurance companies, giving them $12 billion to make up for taking a bath on Obamacare. And, a vaccine may be here soon – not to fight COVID, but to protect businesses from virus-related lawsuit.
Was the pandemic an “Act of God”? It’s not really a religious question, it’s a big-time legal question. Billions in insurance benefits depend on the answer. The Supreme Court issues a decision that could signal how it might come out when the next abortion case hits their docket. And will the “culture wars” over reopening society help Trump’s chances in November?
COVID continues to reshape the law. Supreme Court arguments will be held by teleconference! The justice won’t even know if the lawyers are wearing pants (which is fair given the eternal mystery of what’s under those black robes). Los Angeles County is springing 25% of its inmates. The Sheriff suggests folks get ready for what might be a spike in crime.
Governments are getting creative about delivering help to tenants, and folks whose jobs have disappeared. Meantime, Covidiots and conspiracy theorists are working overtime: Intentional coughing on food, and lighting 5G towers on fire are landing people in jail. Finally, a hypothetical: If Trump got the virus and beat it, would he get the “Boris Johnson Bump”?
In addition to the health toll, the pandemic is a job killer. Should unemployment rules be revamped? Is the “never let a crisis go to waste” crowd taking their eye off the goals of saving lives and saving the economy? And, we know COVID-19 is threatening to make eviction extinct – did you know Congress is limiting lawsuits against the health care profession?
COVID-19 continues to shape our lives: Trump moves the social distancing time frame from Easter to April 30. Cities and states decide if gun shops are “essential businesses.” The 41 million sex workers worldwide can’t report for duty at brothels. And by the way, if you can’t pay the rent, will evictions be put on hold?
Our latest edition of the “bunker diaries” focuses on price gouging -- don’t try it, you’re looking at a year in jail for boosting some prices more than 10% in a national emergency. Plus, up in the sky, it’s a police drone keeping an eye on those who don’t “shelter in place.” And, your rights when it comes to virus-era workers’ comp and ADA claims.
The coronavirus is changing everything in society, including your legal rights. Working remotely? Business trips? Taking your temperature at the office? Are these decisions up to you, or the boss? And, there’s legal news beyond the virus – the president is firing off libel lawsuits against the Washington Post, the New York Times and others – is he weaponizing litigation, trying to deter the press from publishing opinions that are critical of the administration? Or is he standing up to media bias...
As popular vote losers rack up electoral college wins, the drumbeat gets louder for abolishing the institution. Some states have a plan for that: A compact where states commit their electors to the popular vote winner. But, the Supreme Court may strike it down, because the constitution says the winner is the candidate with a majority of the electoral votes. And believe it or not, “The Small Penis Rule” is a defamation law concept.
There was outrage when Bill Clinton pardoned big Democrat donor and fugitive financier Marc Rich. Now, Trump doubles down by gifting his supporters with pardons and commutations. The tradition of dispensing mercy is being replaced by what looks like a Celebrity Apprentice reunion show. And, Bernie Sanders doubles down – after coming out for letting all incarcerated felons vote, he looks on the bright side of communist Cuba’s totalitarianism.
People like to joke about Alexa or their smart TV listening in on their conversations. But is it a joke? Location tracking can tell “big data” where just about everybody on the planet is at every moment. There’s a push to make DNA swabs as universal as fingerprints. And with facial recognition, anonymity is officially dead. Time for a eulogy for privacy?
Let me get this straight. Ninety women accuse Weinstein of rape or assault or harassment. So the geniuses in the DA’s office decide to start with two women who were super-friendly with Weinstein for years after their assaults, seeking his Hollywood help. The judge allowed some additional victims to testify, a ruling that survived appellate review in the Bill Cosby case, but could be an Achilles heel in the Weinstein matter. And, should Weinstein have rolled the dice and maneuvered his walker to ...
So if you’re pairing wines, what goes with . . . heroin? Presidential aspirant Pete Buttigieg shook up the race by announcing he’s for legalization of every single drug – if you use heroin, meth, coke or the ganja, he says you shouldn’t spend a day in jail. When it comes to the drug war, Pete’s got a plan for that. We talk about whether the national “Just Say No” approach is too expensive, too ineffective, and too totalitarian to continue. Do the state laboratories of legalization help point us ...
Bolton’s blockbuster book wasn’t enough to extend the Trump impeachment trial, so Democrats offered impassioned argument to support the doomed mission of convincing twenty GOP senators to say “You’re Fired!” The trial had high drama, from Chuck Schumer trying to convince the Chief Justice to break a tie, to Jerry Nadler beating Adam Schiff in a footrace to the podium for the Democrats’ last word. Now the waiting game: Will Democrats pay the price for insisting on a trial, in the form of an energ...
Charles Dickens started out "A Tale of Two Cities" with "It was the worst of times, it was the best of times." Well we now have "A Tale of Two Trials," starring Donald Trump and Harvey Weinstein. Let's just call it the worst of times. Trump’s “trial” is bizarre. The judge really isn’t a judge, he can be overruled by the senators on any ruling. How about witnesses, the stars of any other proceeding? That’s up in the air. As for the jurors, they aren’t expected to be unbiased, they’re free to prea...
“Two Many Lawyers” breaks down legal developments, with two legal analysts who couldn’t be more different: A libertarian baby boomer, and a millennial progressive. They not only know each other, they’re father and son. Whether they tackle Trump’s impeachment, Buttigieg’s call to legalize every drug, or the NRA’s demand that teachers pack heat, attorneys Royal Oakes and Connor Oakes lay out the issues in an entertaining, attention-grabbing way.
