Comedian of Law

Scott Briscoe's Funny Yet True Legal Tips

In this episode, Joel talks to Scott Briscoe, a criminal lawyer with years of experience and outrageous stories. He has been dishing out free legal advice online for quite some time. However, these aren’t your run-of-the-mill legal tips. These are oddly specific pieces of advice on practices to avoid if you don’t want to serve time, based on his own 23 years in criminal law.

For example, “hold off on wearing your ‘Out on Bail’ shirt the day you commit a crime, unless you prefer a little irony in your mug shot.”

We hope you never need these pieces of advice, but Scott is here with top-notch guidance to help you dodge the mistakes others have made. 

We interviewed him to get some of his best “legal tips” along with the crazy background stories that go with them! 

Read our blog where we feature some of our favorite tips, not discussed in this episode, here.

See Scott's page where he posts his tips here. 

The Confirmable ACB

This week, Amy Coney Barrett has been in the spotlight as she undergoes her confirmation hearings for possible appointment to the Supreme Court. With the presidential election less than 3 weeks away, there has been a lot of controversy surrounding the timing of ACB's nomination. In the hearings this week, there have been long speeches made by senators, many questions asked about Roe and the ACA, and a refreshing lack of drama like what surrounded the 2018 Kavanaugh hearings. 

In this episode, Joel and Mackenzie discuss confirmation hearing highlights, Joel's tweets, and judicial philosophy. 

For more information on the topic, check out Comedian of Law's blog "Filling the Seat: How ACB's Confirmation Stacks Up with History."

Contested Elections and Fear Mongering

After recent debates, we can't deny that fighting is highly prevalent in our elections. Presidential candidates have been known for hurling insults and creating fear by inciting thoughts of the worst case scenario. But, this isn't new. That has been going on since America's first election. 

Take these 1800's presidential candidates' insults for example:

“If you elect the other guy, we would see our wives and daughters the victims of legal prostitution.” Or “My opponent would create a nation where ‘murder, robbery, rape, adultery and incest will openly be taught and practiced.’” Or "hideous hermaphroditical character, which has neither the force and firmness of a man, nor the gentleness and sensibility of a woman.”

When it comes to fear mongering and hermaphrodite attacks, there is nothing new under the sun.

In this episode, Joel Oster and Mackenzie Smith will unpack the history of ugly political insults, contested elections, as well as go over the VP debate and the Supreme Court, all in this week’s Debriefing of the Law.

Podcast references:

Daisy Commercial

Cider & the Election Image

To read more about the history of American Politics, check out our most recent blog: "American Deja Vu: 2020 isn't as "unprecedented" as We Think.

Remembering the Notorious RBG

Amy Coney Barrett, aka Newbie ACB, has been nominated to replace the Notorious RBG on the Supreme Court. Which means ... hold on to your seats. We are about to witness a confirmation proceeding that will make the Tyson/Holyfield fight seem like a petty sibling rivalry. In today's podcast, Mackenzie Smith and Joel Oster remember the Notorious RBG and her stellar legal career. From graduating top of her class at Columbia to staring in three major movies, including a legos movie, she has seen it all. 

In addition, we will look to her possible replacement. Will the Newbie ACB replace the Notorious one?

For more information, check out this blog on RBG paving the way for ACB.

Interview with Shannon Bahrke, 2 time Olympic Medalist, on how to incorporate winning training habits into your daily routine

Shannon Bahrke talks about how she trained to become a world champion and Olympic medalist and how those training habits can be incorporated into your daily routine.

Bashing on the Big 10 - Who's afraid of the big bad wolf?

The Big 10 reminds me of Biff from Back to the Future: A big bully and an idiot. What is the Big 10 doing? Trying to tell every recruit "yes football is a violent sport. But have you seen the briefcase of that attorney? We're scared!" If you are of the mind that the Big 10 rooted its decision in the findings of the medical and scientific communities, let me remind you - they cancelled football ... and track. Seriously Big 10, you can figure out how to gas your car safely but you can't figure out how to sanitize a shot-put? 

 

But it's not enough that the Big 10 is scared of lawyers, the Big 10 is also the neighborhood bully. I might be able to excuse their decision as being protective of their NY (Rutgers) and Chicago (Northwestern) area universities. But the Big 10 also is comprised of rural areas such as Nebraska and Iowa. Why should the Big 10 cripple the economies of places like Lincoln and Iowa City because of the impact of the virus on huge metro areas? But, like Biff, the Big 10 bullied Nebraska and said if we cant play football as a conference, then you can't play either. Thanks Biff!

So what did the Big 10's "I'm afraid of lawyers so let's just cancel all sports" and their "If we can't play no one can play" get them? A lawsuit. Somewhere, Alanis Morissette is smiling.

De-Briefing the Law - Kraft's nude videos

Robert Kraft’s solicitation charges are in doubt after the court throws out the videos. No word if Hoody has had them deleted yet. Trump’s personal twitter account is now before the US Supreme Court. Finally, we can get to the bottom of this Kafafee.  I hope I am using that made-up word correctly. And Steve Bannon is charged with fraud over the Go Fund the Wall account. Which does beg the question – who donated to that cause? Isn't that like, “Hey, I don’t pay enough in taxes. Why not pay more?”  Really folks, If you care that little about your money, send it to me. I’m building a wall around my landscaping.  All of this, plus I interview Steven Iwersen about his book Porcupine Principles, in this week's De-Briefing of the Law.

De-Briefing the Law - Kamala Harris and the Bully Big 10

The Big 10’s lawyers bully the University of Nebraska’s football team into submission, I am guessing this battle didn’t occur physically on the football field, Kamala Harris is apparently already on the clock now trying to vet her possible VP candidates, yea, watch your back Biden, and the DOJ sends a letter to Yale saying they are discriminating against Asian Americans in their admission process. All in this week’s debriefing of the law.

De-Briefing the Law - Trump tries to move election and participation trophies at bar exams

President Trump forgets he has a legal team before tweeting he wants to move the election, Johnny Dep admits to being an habitual drug user and all-around bad guy in his defamation trial, and Bar Examiners have given up and resorted to handing out participation trophies, all in this week’s debriefing of the law. 

 

 

 

 

Episode 28 - Wacky Case Countdown with Zak Oster and Mackenzie Smith

Constanza sued Seinfeld in a case the court said “is about nothing,” a man in Ohio asks a court to undue his own death certificate, and A dad sues his wife after she gives birth to an ugly child, all in this week’s debriefing of the law.