Broken Law
Ever feel like the law is stacked against you? It probably is. Broken Law speaks truth to power in discussing how our laws and legal system serve the few at the expense of the many. This is where law meets real life. Hosted by the staff of the American Constitution Society, we reckon with the origins of our legal system, interview people on the frontlines of the progressive legal movement, and chat about necessary legal reforms to restore our democratic legitimacy and improve the lives of all people.
Episodes
190 episodes
Episode 189: 'Stand Up Now': Lessons Learned on the Ground in Chicago
This fall, the Department of Homeland Security descended on the Greater Chicago area as part of an aggressive immigration enforcement campaign targeting Democratic-run cities. Scott Sakiyama joins Lindsay Langholz to discuss his experienc...
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Episode 189
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45:37
Episode 188: Carrying the Day: Reordering Legal Values Toward Indigenous Rights in Sacred Sites
Indigenous communities are often invited to participate in the conversation about access to their sacred sites but rarely do their interests prevail. Time and again, their input is received and yet made subordinate to competing interests from c...
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Episode 188
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52:28
Episode 187: Trump's Threats of a Third Term and the 22nd Amendment
President Trump is currently remodeling a house that he does not seem keen to move out of when his lease is up. Donald Sherman of CREW joins Lindsay Langholz to discuss the threat of Trump seeking a third term, and why in spite of clear ...
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Episode 187
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42:59
Episode 186: DEI and the First Amendment
Right-wing operatives continue to target diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. Through a growing web of hostile executive orders, state bans, and private lawsuits, enemies of diversity are using law to chill discussion of race, gender, sex...
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Episode 186
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53:38
Episode 185: So You're Thinking of Running for Office...
In the midst of an all-out assault on the rule of law, many are seeking opportunities to get involved in their communities to fight for our democracy. We've heard from members of our network who are interested in running for office or are...
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Episode 185
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54:05
Episode 184: On the Merits - A Preview of the 2025-2026 SCOTUS Term
After a very active summer on the emergency docket, the Supreme Court is set to begin a new term. Christopher Wright Durocher and Taonga Leslie join Lindsay Langholz to break down several important cases on the Court's merits docket, incl...
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Episode 184
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1:02:31
Episode 183: Circling Back
This week on Broken Law, we are circling back on stories we've previously covered, providing updates you may have missed before we head into a new SCOTUS term and a new academic year. Lindsay Langholz and Christopher Wright Durocher bring...
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Episode 183
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15:57
Episode 182: Waging Lawfare Against Democracy
The Trump administration has sought to advance its extreme and often unlawful agenda through the strategic use and abuse of the law and legal system, including Executive Orders targeting law firms and litigation and misconduct complaints agains...
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Episode 182
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47:55
Episode 181: AI and Health Equity
Over the past few years, no technological development has been more discussed than the rise of artificial intelligence and machine learning. AI is changing how we work, how we make art, and even how we access healthcare. Jennifer Oliva joins Ta...
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Episode 181
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46:19
Episode 180: The Voting Rights Act at 60
Sixty years ago, Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law one of the most transformative bills in United States history - the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Michael Li joins Lindsay Langholz to take stock of the VRA's impact on American democracy, t...
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Episode 180
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45:44
Episode 179: "Active Participants in Our Own Liberation"
ACS recently completed our 2025 National Convention Series, taking a deep dive into states' responses to the pressing issues of immigration, democracy and voting, economic and racial justice, and transgender rights. This week, we bring you brie...
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Episode 179
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26:03
Episode 178: 'Irreparable Harm': A Supreme Court Term Review
The Supreme Court recently wrapped up its 2024-2025 term and the ACS Policy and Program team is here to break down the headline cases, those that may have slipped under your radar, and several that came and went via the shadow docket....
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Episode 178
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1:09:52
Episode 177: The Legal System's Role in Political Violence
The country has recently experienced a series of escalating instances of political violence, perpetrated by individuals as well as state actors wielding governmental power. Christopher Wright Durocher is joined by Lindsay Langholz to disc...
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Episode 177
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56:33
Episode 176: Checks and Balances Upside Down
In these first months of his second term, President Trump has fired or attempted to fire thousands upon thousands of federal workers. Notable among those affected by this unprecedented flexing of executive authority are leaders of indepen...
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Episode 176
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52:12
Episode 175: Defending Academic Freedom
In recent weeks, the Trump Administration has escalated intimidation efforts against Harvard University and other private colleges, by canceling billions in federal funding and threatening to revoke tax-exempt status unless the schools make maj...
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Episode 175
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1:01:53
Episode 174: The New Civil War Over Reproduction
Far from satisfied with Dobbs, the antiabortion movement is energized and taking aim at their next objective - fetal personhood. Mary Ziegler, author of Personhood: The New Civil War over Reproduction, joins Lindsay Langholz to d...
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Episode 174
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32:16
Episode 173: The First 100 Days
President Trump's first 100 days of his second term have been unlike any other in the modern American presidency. The ACS Programs Team joins to discuss the major actions taken by the Administration in its opening weeks, shine a light on ...
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Episode 173
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1:03:23
Episode 172: A "Bloodless Coup" Underway in North Carolina
Over five months after voters cast their ballots to elect a North Carolina Supreme Court Justice, the election remains uncertified. The losing candidate has taken to the courts in an attempt to change the rules of the contest long after E...
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Episode 172
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36:22
Episode 171: Taking DOGE to Court
There have been over 100 lawsuits challenging many of the early actions of the second Trump Administration. Kate Huddleston joins Lindsay Langholz to discuss the details of one, Campaign Legal Center's recently filed lawsuit challenging t...
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Episode 171
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27:41
Episode 170: Public Policy and Religious Exemptions Collide Again, and Again, at SCOTUS
The Court is entering its final stretch of oral arguments for the 2024-2025 term and they will be hearing four important cases with significant First Amendment implications, particularly when it comes to the separation of church and state. ...
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Episode 170
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48:39
Episode 169: We Are in a Constitutional Crisis
More than 950 law scholars from around the country have signed on to a bipartisan letter decrying President Trump’s slew of illegal executive orders and actions. Christopher Wright Durocher talks with principal author and coordinator of the let...
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Episode 169
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38:38
Episode 168: Confronting the War on Immigrants
Perhaps more than any other issue, harsh immigration enforcement has defined President Trump’s political career. Since returning to office, the President has moved to end birthright citizenship, authorized ICE to raid schools and churches, and ...
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Episode 168
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41:51
Episode 167: TikTok, Adult Content, and the First Amendment's Big Month at the Court
The Supreme Court recently heard two cases that could have significant implications for the way we live our lives online. Gautam Hans joins Lindsay Langholz to reflect on the arguments made to the Court, how to interpret the TikTok v. Gar...
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Episode 167
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42:52
Episode 166: What's Next for DEI?
From the first Trump Administration's executive order restricting equity and inclusion discussions across the federal government to the Supreme Court's decision in Students for Fair Admissions, the last few years have seen significant ...
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Episode 166
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38:53
Episode 165: Judging the Failure of Constitutional Theory
What is constitutional theory and do judges actually need one? Mark Tushnet joins Christopher Wright Durocher to discuss his new book, Who Am I to Judge? Judicial Craft Versus Constitutional Theory, and how reasoned judgment can lead t...
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Episode 165
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40:36
