The Firm, the legal thriller starring Tom Cruise, shows us that big law is sometimes worse than the literal mob.If... more

New from Prologue Projects and Pushkin Industries: it's a new edition of Fiasco: Iran-Contra, widely available for the first time... more

The Supreme Court under Trump 2.0 is engaging in their favorite pastime: finding convoluted procedural reasons to rule in his... more

Finally, the Supreme Court gets to live its dream: being xenophobic and homophobic at the same time.If you're not a... more

The Trump administration has moved at breakneck speed to suppress free speech, mass deport hundreds of individuals without due process,... more

While a law may have discriminatory or racist effects—such as diluting the Black vote in a city and rendering those... more

How much poop is in our water? The Supreme Court says “not enough.” If you're not a 5-4 Premium member, you're... more

Before he was ever a Supreme Court justice, Lewis Powell was an enterprising corporate attorney representing tobacco companies and calling... more

Presidential candidates raised more than $1.6 billion in the 2024 election cycle, but if you think flooding politics with money... more

Crisis pregnancy centers can provide misinformation about healthcare and perform medical procedures without requiring a licensed doctor. Yes, all of... more

This episode was available early to Premium members. If you'd like that kind of perk, consider joining at fivefourpod.com/support.What do... more

Trump’s blitzkrieg of executive orders has left many of us scrambling. The policies are cruel and reactionary, but do they... more

What do you do if ICE comes to your door? How will Trump enforce his anti-trans orders? Are there risks... more

The Supreme Court says that you don’t have a constitutional right to post short form videos of cute cats. Is... more

You may have noticed that sports betting apps have taken over the world in just a few short years. Blame... more

Peter and Michael join the hosts of the podcast "Know Your Enemy" to discuss how Trump is likely to reshape... more

Every year we like to share some organizations that have a special meaning to us. Given the year ahead, please... more

Only subscribers can hear the rest of our conversation about some of pop culture's entertaining legal battles. You could impress... more

Imagine losing some of your civil rights based on where you happen to be hanging out. Crazy, we know.You should... more

We should all want accurate food labels and strong regulations. We don't want to consume raw milk or mix dolphin... more

Only subscribers get to hear the rest of our conversation about how the Democratic party fell short of making judicial... more

Damn you, Merrick Garland. This all could have been avoided... With the election now over, we digest what happened with... more

With a second Trump presidency on the horizon, we look ahead to how trans rights will be under attack. 5-4... more

Only subscribers get to hear the rest of our delightful review of My Cousin Vinny, which we consider one of... more

How America’s morally and physically ugliest billionaires are plotting to destroy labor rights.You can subscribe to 5-4 Premium on Patreon,... more

Could a national abortion ban already be in the works? A majority of Americans say no thank you, but as... more

Think you're an American citizen just because you're born here? Think again.You can subscribe to 5-4 Premium on Patreon, Apple... more

Do you love culture war? Then the upcoming Supreme Court term is for you...You can subscribe to 5-4 Premium on... more

This is a subscriber-only episode about the Real John Roberts, as rendered in a New York Times exposé about the... more

White collar ass crime... You can subscribe to 5-4 Premium on Patreon, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. 5-4 is presented by... more

Is being dosed against your will with mind-altering drugs just part of being a soldier? You won't believe what the... more

You've heard about the law on 5-4… now, what if you went to a school about it? In this annual... more

This is a subscriber-only episode about Biden's proposals for reforming the Supreme Court... will the hosts of 5-4 say "we... more

Did the January 6th riot "obstruct an official proceeding"? That depends on how you interpret that very straightforward and unambiguous... more

It's not about BEING homeless, it's about doing something that's homeless. If you're not a 5-4 Premium member, you're not... more

Barbie doesn't have shit on John Roberts. Now that he's killed off Chevron deference, Roberts can be an aircraft safety... more

We once again revisit the idea that a bribe is only a bribe if it's in a pillowcase with a... more

This case includes descriptions of domestic violence. Please take care while listening.If you're not a 5-4 Premium member, you're not... more

Take a deep breath. John Roberts just handed Donald Trump the keys to the country and said "don't bother bringing it... more

Citing Urban Dictionary and wikiHow*, Clarence Thomas argues that a gun that can kill hundreds of people with a single... more

The Court is back at again, pretending like they don't understand politics, while handing conservatives a victory that cements their... more

Harvard invited us back (so that's on them) to talk about the speciousness of originalism, inclusive constitutionalism, and how to... more

Run a January 6th insurrectionist flag up the pole and see who salutes. Oh look! It's appointed-for-life Supreme Court Justice... more

Brett Kavanaugh might have had a better shot at writing a reasonable decision if Arizona v. Navajo Nation revolved around... more

In the movies, detectives trail a suspect until he messes up and throws his DNA-soaked paper cup into the trash.... more

What to do if you get arrested (not legal advice™), why are the liberal justices just sitting back while conservatives... more

Rhi got locked up. The food was bad, the comrades were immaculate, and while the friendless centrist pundits on Twitter... more

E Pluribus Unum, more like E Pluribus Sue Them! In America, if your landlord refuses to do repairs, you sue... more

Listen, we're not going to do the whole merch thing again, but it's time to hang up the robe and... more

Santa isn't the only one who keeps a naughty and nice list. And if your organization winds up on the... more

Texas passed a law that allows it to police the US border with Mexico without regard to federal policy. That... more

The Court does not want you to plead not guilty by reason of insanity and to enforce that, they'll happily... more

This is the story of a man with the worst luck in the whole world, and how Jay-Z called the... more

We're joined by Balls and Strikes' Jay Willis in this emergency episode to talk about Trump v. Anderson, which challenged... more

The legal academy is losing its mind. Good news for us, the profs are talking about their broken brains in... more

You can't sue the President if they wronged you, as long as what they did was in the course of... more

Groundhog Day but make it interrogation. The Supreme Court says cops are welcome to keep hauling you in for questioning... more

Let's burn this motherfucker down metaphorically speaking OF COURSE! Today we're talking about how to counter Fed Soc's influence on... more

The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist. He learned it from the Federalist... more

First you get the money, then you get the power. But FIRST first you get the law students. This week... more

There's a powerfully connected right-wing organization operating at every elite law school in the nation. It built itself by leveraging... more

Every year we like to shout out organizations that inspire us or have deeply embarrassing kompromat on us. Good luck... more

This episode was available early to Premium members. If you'd like that kind of perk, consider joining at fivefourpod.com/support.Ryna Workman... more

Ryna Workman and Jinan Chehade were both knocked off the Big Law course they thought they were on, after expressing... more

It's basically impossible to amend our crummy Constitution, as demonstrated by the litany of proposed amendments that have face planted... more

Our nation has laws, procedures, and courts for settling labor disputes. But what if you're a concrete company and you... more

Get a load of this - this guy accepted a SALARY for TEACHING at a SCHOOL. Simply not Supreme Court... more

We want to dedicate this episode to Vermont and Maine, the only two states in this whole goddamn country that... more

War! Huh! Yeah! What is it good for? Absolutely suppressing speech!Read "The Anti-Surveillance Coalition's Highest-Stakes Gamble" by Spencer Ackermanhttps://foreverwars.ghost.io/the-anti-surveillance-coalitions-highest-stakes-gamble/Listen to... more

You are a person with power. Now is the time to use it.Call your representatives: https://ceasefiretoday.com/Join a protest: https://www.shutitdown4palestine.org/Follow:@palestinianyouthmovement@motaz_azaiza@byplestia@wizard_bisan1@mohammedelkurd@pal_legal Hosted... more

A conversation about Legally Blonde has to do with the Supreme Court … how? Because we assume in Elle's universe... more

We're sharing this episode of Rhiannon's movement lawyering series with all of our listeners. Our Patreon subscribers heard it first,... more

This case about discrimination on the basis of pregnancy might have you thinking that Potter Stewart said "trans rights are... more

In a world where the police are charged with protecting your Constitutional rights, they'd be climbing all over themselves to... more

Proving once again that the sequel is always worse … we present Brown v. Board of Education II, and the... more

My life is a movie! A movie where a federal agent sets me up to do a drug deal by... more

Doesn't it feel like we JUST did a term recap episode? What if the Supreme Court just like took a... more

We have the smartest, most curious listeners in the business and in this episode we're answering your burning questions with... more

We're joined by Nick Estes, of The Red Nation podcast to talk about Indigenous sovereignty, land back, and how stupid... more

Just like clockwork, the Spirit Halloweens are popping up and law students are heading back to campus, which means it's... more

Jump int the RV kids, we're exploring Clarence Thomas' dissents, concurrences, and the mind of the man. Buckle up, because... more

The Supreme Court has overturned one of our nation's only proactive strategies for addressing its foundational sin. But what's worse, the... more

The lapsed memberships of your youth can be held against you in immigration proceedings. It's only a matter of time... more

The 2022 Supreme Court term is officially over. Don't you feel relieved? lol us neither.The full version of this Premium... more

This episode discusses child abuse. We urge you to take care while listening.If you're not a 5-4 Premium member, you're... more

Absolutely fuck the major questions doctrine, fuck this Court, and fuck student loan debt. Come get pissed with us.If you're... more

In this case from this past Friday, the Court has added a giant loophole to our anti-discrimination laws. How big... more

What has a head and a mouth, but cannot wear a hat? A river! What has its head up its... more

This episode was available early to Premium members. If you'd like that kind of perk, consider joining at fivefourpod.com/support.Journalist Erin... more

When the union's inspiration through the workers' blood shall runThere can be no power greater anywhere beneath the sunUnless the... more

I am Bill Douglas, I speak for the trees.  I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues.... more

The death penalty has a long, ugly, racially-motivated history in the United States. Let's dig into the state's monopoly on... more

War, huh, yeah. What is it good for? Curtailing the First Amendment!If you're not a 5-4 Premium member, you're not... more

As the Court has moved right, it's been using the "shadow docket" to execute on more of its agenda. Previously... more

Jackson, Mississippi out here with the supervillian-level attitude towards public goods - "if I have to share, then no one... more

Just to refresh your memory - bribery is when you write "bribe in exchange for your vote" on the memo... more

The tension is palpable with the count tied at 3-2 … the defendant steps up to the plate and …... more

Well if intimidating minority voters, issuing memos in support of school segregation, and moving into a neighborhood that bars Jews... more

This episode contains discussions about the right to die, end of life matters, and suicide, which may be uncomfortable for... more

We're back with another episode of Rhiannon's movement lawyering series! In this episode, Rhiannon talks with Palestine Legal's senior staff... more

Breaking news! It's not just the Supreme Court that sucks - it's ALSO the executive and legislative branches!  This week... more

What does a military contractor have in common with Justice Antonin Scalia? They both manufacture things! The contractor manufactures helicopters... more

Recorded live at Stateside at the Paramount! Join us as we skewer Texas judges (not literally!), teach a robot to... more

This week, 5-4 invites you to check out an episode of Unreformed: the Story of the Alabama Industrial School for Negro... more

It's not easy being a kid. Especially when the state thinks you don't have any constitutional rights. Thank goodness for... more

You know and hate qualified immunity, which allows cops to get away with murder. Now meet prosecutorial immunity, the judge-made... more

What is the greater crime? Missing a recording and pushing an episode back by a week … or using the... more

Recorded live at Harvard Law School's Corporate Capture of the Legal System conference, we're talking about Jones Day. The law... more

In this case from 1944 the Court decides that arresting someone on "suspicion of being Japanese" and putting them in... more

Here at 5-4 HQ we get a lot of questions. And while we can't answer the ones from our parents,... more

Don't get it twisted: "the point" whizzing high over the heads of Supreme Court justices is a tradition as old... more

The dictionary defines "quid pro quo" as "when a businessman walks up to a Congressman in the Capitol and hands... more

This week, 5-4 invites you to check out an episode of If Books Could Kill, featuring Michael Hobbes, of Maintenance... more

We spend the better part of the year bumming you out about the many ways the law fails to actually... more

For some strange reason, there aren't many thrillers about the Supreme Court. The Pelican Brief remedies this obvious oversight by... more

Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor is undoubtedly one of our faves. But "no robes, no masters" still applies.The full version of... more

This episode contains graphic depictions of an execution. Please take care while listening.If you're not a 5-4 Premium member, you're... more

The Fourth Amendment protects you from unreasonable search and seizure by the government. Unless the government wants to unreasonably search... more

The full version of this episode is available now to our 5-4 Premium supporters. To join, visit www.fivefourpod.com/support5 to 4 is... more

Justice Samuel Alito is deeply contemptuous of those who don't share his worldview, where abortion is murder, and the cops... more

This episode quotes outdated language about homosexuality that maybe painful to hear. Please take care while listening.If you're not a... more

The first time the Supreme Court flirted with Independent State Legislature doctrine, George W. Bush wound up in the presidency.... more

The hosts have some ~personal~ news.The full version of this premium episode is available exclusively to our Patreon supporters. To... more

The state of legal discourse is bad. There's an entire ecosystem of talkers that need the Court to exist so... more

Fun party idea: convene 11 strangers, get zooted at lunch, deal some weed, do a little coke in the bathroom... more

Having accomplished their big goals of overturning Roe and giving a praying football coach back a job he never actually... more

The Supreme Court term begins next week and for the first time in American history, a Black woman will sit... more

Welcome to citizenship in the United States of America - you knew that you weren't guaranteed to get health care,... more

Cops have to read you your Miranda rights. If they don't … nothing happens, according to this recent Supreme Court... more

Oh my god, MORE of you decided to go to law school? Even after we released this episode last year?... more

Harriet Miers was a lawyer and advisor in the Bush Administration. But what she was NOT was reliably conservative enough... more

The United States has a long, complex, and often contradictory history of firearm regulation. Clarence Thomas reached into that history,... more

Continuing its trajectory of abandoning tests that don't pass the vibe check, the Supreme Court ruled that states can prosecute... more

Live from the People's Parity convening in Washington, DC, we're talking about free speech and the right's obsession with cancel... more

Senator Elizabeth Warren, we can only assume against the advice of counsel, agreed to come on 5-4. We talked about... more

Imagine you are given a month and a half head start on a race. Do you A) start running, B)... more

John Roberts has decided that the standard for whether or not something is a "major question" is whether or not... more

In this case from the most recent term, the Court once again says we should look to history and tradition... more

This episode contains descriptions of violence against a child that may be challenging for some listeners. Please take care while... more

The Supreme Court has released the long-awaited Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision. The news is bad. Ruling in... more