SCOTUSblog contributor and EmpiricalSCOTUS analyst Adam Feldman joins us for a recap of the 2024–25 Supreme Court term. We dive into the end-of-term Stat Pack, ideological surprises, dissent patterns, and whether the Court is still a 6–3 conservative lock—or something more nuanced.

We discuss:

• Headlines make an opinion a “blockbuster,” but what really makes it significant?
• How Justice Kagan ended up in the majority more than some of the conservatives.
• Why Justice Kavanaugh writes so many concurrences.
• Does the emergency docket (aka “shadow docket”) confound the predictability of legal outcomes?
• Gorsuch’s libertarian streak, Barrett’s evolving voice, and Thomas’s prolific pen.
• Is the Court 3–3–3? Or just a 6-3 with what Adam calls a “soft middle”?
• SCOTUS opinion length, voting blocs, and coalition patterns—and why they matter to your next cert petition.

Tune in to learn how to read between the majority lines—and what might be coming in the 2025–26 term.

Mere days after SCOTUS enjoins universal injunctions, judges find other way to afford “complete relief.” A big one: The Administrative Procedure Act allows courts to enjoin agency actions.

Also:

• What if a defendant does not want a co-defendant dismissed and relieved of liability? The California Supreme Court says co-defendants can oppose each other’s MSJs in R&D Contractors v. Superior Court.
• The Climategate saga continues: when 12-years of anti-SLAPP litigation does not end Dr. Michael Mann’s lawsuit defending his “hockey stick” temperature graph, the D.C. court reverses on punitive damages: with a mere $1 nominal damages award, $1M in punitives is too high. Dr. Mann’s total result after a dozen years of litigation: $6,002 (and a bill for $9,000 in discovery sanctions).
• You snooze, you pay: Employer gets sanctioned $183k for late arbitration fee payment in Guffey v. Bokeet.
• Family law FC 2030 fee denial reversed for considering improper, extra-statutory equitable factors in Marriage of Sadie v. Cativar.
• Georgia appellate court sanctions lawyer for ChatGPT-cited fake cases, citing study showing AI makes mistakes 75% of the time.
• Can you hand up exhibits during appellate argument? Maybe in Texas.
• The Third District new program delays record deadlines pending mediation.

Tune in for insights on trial prep, appeals strategy, and the increasingly blurred lines between branches of government.

Appellate Specialist Jeff Lewis' biography, LinkedIn profile, and Twitter feed.

Appellate Specialist Tim Kowal's biography, LinkedIn profile, Twitter feed, and YouTube page.

Sign up for Not To Be Published, Tim Kowal’s weekly legal update, or view his blog of recent cases.

Other items discussed in the episode:

• Climate Change Trial Update: Jury awards $1 plus $1M punitives for hockey-stick criticism
• Alex Anteau 'Don't Be Dumb': Ga. Court of Appeals Sanction Gives Insight...
• Law360 The Funniest Moments of The Supreme Court's Term - Law360

No more nationwide injunctions, SCOTUS says Justice Barrett writing for the 6-3 majority in Trump v. CASA. District courts must limit their injunctions to the “case or controversy” before it. Justices Sotomayor and Jackson each wrote dissents urging that more judicial power was needed to check the executive. In response, Justice Barrett says that exceeding judicial power is not the right way to address excessive executive power.

The Court did not reach the merits of the Natural Born Citizenship clause.

Also:

• The 9th Circuit seems poised to hold that anti-SLAPP motions are not appealable. This week’s en banc oral argument in Gopher Media v. Malone had many judges criticizing its precedent to the contrary.
• A lawyer calls a justice “honey” at oral argument. The internet is not forgiving.
• A party improperly recorded a trial court proceeding. While noting it is against the rules, the appellate court uses it as the record.
• How many hours does an appeal take?

Appellate Specialist Jeff Lewis' biography, LinkedIn profile, and Twitter feed.

Appellate Specialist Tim Kowal's biography, LinkedIn profile, Twitter feed, and YouTube page.

Sign up for Not To Be Published, Tim Kowal’s weekly legal update, or view his blog of recent cases.

Other items discussed in the episode:

https://www.scotusblog.com/cases/case-files/trump-v-casa-inc/

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/meganwade_i-am-very-curious-to-see-responses-here-activity-7343977603051008002-fy8B?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAACr8Z0cBB2uXy0Jklta4ZeCWMkby7fji_Xk

• Videos from this episode will be posted at Tim Kowal’s YouTube channel.