Deploying humor and pop-culture references to drive home its persuasive message, Lawless by former U.S. Supreme Court clerk Leah Litman is a call to action for those reeling from Supreme Court decisions in such cases such as Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization and West Virginia v. EPA. To make change happen, she insists, one must first understand the court's jurisprudence.
When it comes to abortion access, voting rights, the influx of money in politics, and "temper tantrums about LGBT equality," the court is no longer an impartial interpreter of the law, asserts Litman. Rather, the highest court in the U.S., flaunting its conservative supermajority, has obliterated judicial precedent to instead align its rulings with Republican "talking points" and grievances.
Litman skillfully distills complex case law into easily digestible facts and offers helpful historical and political context for the immense power the court has accrued. A University of Michigan Law School professor and co-host of the podcast Strict Scrutiny, Litman irreverently harnesses themes gleaned from television shows such as Game of Thrones and Arrested Development and the films American Psycho and Barbie to expose flaws in the court's rulings.
Taking the long view, Litman encourages political engagement at the local level to turn the situation around at the national level. She cites the case of Kris Mayes, a Democrat who won the 2022 race for Arizona attorney general by just 280 votes, then went on to save an innocent man from an "absolutely ghoulish" Supreme Court ruling. The solution isn't stacking the courts with liberals. Rather, Litman concludes, it's about making sure "that courts do not get in the way of democracy." --Shahina Piyarali