(4.5 stars)

Thank you to Atria Books for the free ARC via NetGalley! All opinions are my own.

While I often read to escape or check out of real life and current events for a bit, there is a time and place for non-fiction (and fiction!) that helps me understand the current moment. That's where books like Lawless by Leah Litman come in.

Leah (Professor Litman) is a law professor at the University of Michigan Law School, a co-host of the Strict Scrutiny Podcast, and a dedicated Swiftie. In other words, you're in good hands with her. In this book she lays out the patterns and history that got us to the modern U.S. Supreme Court - the one that overturned Roe v. Wade, gave the President almost total immunity, and so many more harmful decisions over the last few years. Through the lens of 5 topics she explains how the conservative majority relies on grievances about conservative views becoming more and more fringe to protect those views above all else. And the same justices that frequently emphasize adherence to the text of the laws above all else don't have a problem relying on vibes - theories they pulled out of nowhere - when it feels right to them.

Back when I was in law school and took constitutional law, I came out of the class more cynical about the Court. My feeling at the end of the day was that these were people smart enough to write some words that sounded good to get to the result they wanted. And that was 10+ years ago - as Leah demonstrates in this book it's only gotten worse since then.

I really appreciated learning about these trends in context. The book also filled in several gaps in my own knowledge, both in terms of recent court decisions and the historical context for them. This book is not just for lawyers though - Leah avoids complex legalese to explain these issues to anyone who cares to learn about them.

I highly recommend reading this book if you want to know more about why the Supreme Court has gone off the rails with a side of sarcasm, wit, and plenty of pop culture references. I don't recommend reading this book if you disagree with the characterization that the Court has gone off the rails.

Lawless is out May 13. Thank you so much to Leah for writing it - it certainly informed my understanding of where we are, how we got here, and why it's important to keep fighting back.

Leah Litman's voice is so present in her writing. As a regular listener of the Strict Scrutiny podcast, I could hear her in my head as I was reading.

I had a few issues with this book. First, I'm not sure where the line is between accessible to the average reader and over-informing. Or how many pop culture references is too many. What works on a podcast doesn't always translate perfectly to a physical book.

That being said, I had an enjoyable time reading this. Or as enjoyable as a time can be while reading about this court and this country. Litman's writing made me laugh (and cry). Lawless is incredibly informative without being dry. Litman provides historical context for the modern day bullshit we're dealing with in a way that is easy to follow. Her writing definitely leans pretty one-sided, but I wasn't bothered by it.

I think I'll probably grab this as an audiobook when it comes out. Thank you to Atria Books for the opportunity to read and review this early.

As a massive Strict Scrutiny fan, I was excited to see Leah Litman had written a book. Her ability to merge insightful analysis with sarcasm and pop culture references is a highlight of her approach to co-hosting the podcast. While the book draws on her insightful analysis, I’m not sure the sarcasm and pop culture references translate to the written word as well.

The good: Litman provides an in-depth analysis of the various court decisions that have led us to the current moment of a SCOTUS that produces decision after decision that undermines equity and chips away at democracy. She also provides much needed historical context that led to these court cases. As I listen to her podcast weekly, I knew much of the cases already, but the added historical context and discussion of how the cases built on each other provided much greater context and understanding.

The not so good: Unfortunately, I’m not sure Litman’s trademark sarcasm translates well to the written word. (I suspect this might be better via the audiobook but not everyone will listen to that.) Sarcasm is hard to make clear in writing and, at times, distracted from the point being made. The pop culture references also felt forced in many instances, rather than the natural flow they have on the podcast, and I worry many are already losing their relevance. In the end, what I wanted from Litman was *more* of her trademark insight and deep analysis.

All of that said, I would recommend this book to anyone wanting a better understanding of how SCOTUS has played a major role in where we currently stand as a country.

In “Lawless,” podcaster and legal expert Leah Litman presents her case that the Supreme Court is not making decisions based on law, they are making decisions based on advancing a political agenda. Her argument is broken into five chapters, each with an overarching pop culture theme. The first chapter, for example, deals with sex discrimination and abortion rights by using references from the movie “Barbie” (portraying the men of the Court having a “Ken-surrection”), and a subsequent chapter is titled “Winter is Coming (for Voting Rights)”.

Litman really knows her stuff, and her analysis gives the reader valuable history and context to the current state of the Court. It’s hard to find fault with her facts (which are backed up with citations that encompass nearly a third of the book), but I know much of her commentary will probably be bothersome to many conservatives. But after all, Mitch McConnell did delay a nominatIon to replace Antonin Scalia until after Barack Obama left office. The Federalist Society did create a list of potential nominees from which Donald Trump chose three nominees.

Although I found Lithwick’s commentary compelling, I also found it very dense. It was hard to keep the many court cases and behind the scenes players straight (which probably illustrates why I am not a lawyer). For me, the attempts to insert pop culture into the proceedings didn’t make it any less dense, and at times they seemed to be shoehorned into the narrative to try and make the material relevant to a broader audience. I enjoy a good Lucille Bluth quote as much as the next person, but ultimately it didn’t help me understand or contextualize the material better.

Many thanks to Altria Group and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I went into this one without having listened to Leah Litman's podcast, Strict Scrutiny. I can see from the style of writing (very conversational) how this information would be great in bite sized pieces and how the book may allow for more deep diving into the information. For me, I was just getting so upset that I ended up DNF, but this is a good read for liberals who want some facts to back your thinking. Supported by great data, anyone outside of the choir might find the quips and asides to be too left wing for your tastes.

The is the absolute PERFECT book to understand our current political climate and why our system of checks and balances is not preventing these gross abuses of power.

While I would’ve loved to have listened to Leah Litman read the audiobook, I was too excited to wait for that and appreciate receiving an advance copy from NetGalley. As a dedicated “Strict Scrutiny” listener I was still able to channel Leah’s sarcasm and wit along with her clear brilliance.
I’m not a lawyer but was familiar with many of the highlighted cases (thru listening to the podcast). This books provides the long-back story to all of these momentous issues abs terrible decisions.
I don’t know why there’s not a similar long-game strategy on the left to begin to chip away at these rulings…but would love to see Leah and her colleagues lead that effort or consult with small-d democratic groups to make these issues more front and center.
And along with all the other books I’ve read over the past years it’s infuriating that the public continues to be gaslit about the high and mighty nature of SCOTUS when they are political animals, using their power and pretending they are wise sages and oracles. Give me a break!!
Thank you Leah Litman for capturing all of this in an informative and dare I say entertaining read.

Leah Litman manages to bring humor into a book detailing the recent trajectory of the Supreme Court in a way that's easy to digest and understand for all readers! Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!

Pros: I loved the conversational tone that carries this book through what can usually be pretty boring topics. I will say, I do think this would be better as an audiobook, which I find is the case with most books written by podcasters. I can only take so many parenthetical asides. Litman is really good at citing all her sources and providing a way for readers to further examine the topics she introduces.

Cons: While I agreed with Litman's takes as a liberal woman, you can definitely tell that this book was written for people that already agree with her stances. I wish she had further developed arguments about why the conservative judges were harmful instead of just using snarky comments about how they suck.

I may have a legal background, but I really think this book is good for those who do not have a legal background to get started on the subject.

If you are a Strict Scrutiny superfan, Leah does not let you down. While the podcast is limited to an hour-ish, here Leah can reallllly go into detail of what she really feels, along with giving us a proper education, wolverine professor style (GO BLUE). I’m in the legal field and have read plenty of books on law and policy, and this one was definitely unique in only the way Leah and her Strict Scrutiny sisters can provide. Pop culture and all the references, and as a law librarian I was happy to see how well researched this was. Footnotes for the win (yes, of course I checked a lot of them out of my own curiosity). I do believe she was able to be concise in such a way that non-lawyers could understand with ease.

It's obvious I’m already a Litman fan, so take that as you will. I don’t think this book will help sway any one’s thoughts, but perhaps it will help those wanting to know the roots of things/how law actually happens (and not just what the television talking heads glaze over missing a LOT of procedure), this is a good resource to help guide you (again, yay footnotes).
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

A very thorough and persuasive argument for how the Supreme Court has turned into a machine for avenging vibes of conservative grievance. After the requisite chapters on reproductive and LGBTQ+ rights, which felt like a necessary but redundant inclusion for any casual follow of judicial culture, the book really hits its stride - the chapters on dark money and the administrative state are standouts, and do well at connecting all of the Court's moves over the past few decades into one overarching act.

The pop culture conceit is cute, but falls a bit flat - this could either have been integrated into the analysis more (rather than the 'insert famous quote from movie/show' deployment in the book) or removed entirely without harming the book's compelling nature.

Fans of Strict Scrutiny will enjoy the tone of voice Litman provides, but may find this repetitive to what the show covers. Readers less familiar with the Court's antics will likely find this much more educational.

As Strict Scrutiny would say, this book is "about the United States Supreme Court and the legal culture that surrounds it." Told with Leah Litman's signature dark humor and SO MANY pop culture references (which I loved, but was honestly impressed by the number), this book covers some of the changes in the modern Supreme Court and how it has taken a lawless approach to recent essential cases. It is incredibly smart, distilling complex topics into easy to understand chapters. I will say as an avid listener to Strict Scrutiny, and after going through law school during many of the cases in the book and summarizing the rest of them at work later on, this book did not touch on any topics that surprised me. But if you are wondering why the Supreme Court is making so many out of pocket decisions, this is the book for you!

Thank you to Atria and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I'm an avid listener of Litman's podcast, "Strict Scrutiny." I think she has excellent insight and reflections on the current court in this book, as scary as it is, and breaks things down in a way that is understandable to those without a law degree.

Boy, this read is fitting for the current status of American Politics.
Constitutional Law was my favorite and one of my best subjects in undergrad and law school.
It can be overwhelming when you really understand that 9 people control the major law of this country.
Law by its nature has inherit biases which can result in systematic flaws by our legal system.

The theory that the judges are neutral and unbiased is one that most be wholly thrown out. Both sides of the aisle have and will continue to use the judicial system for political and personal gain.

Litman is clearly educated in this topic. While I do have a legal education and can understand concept legal concepts, I really enjoyed that she approached her writing in a way that anyone can understand.

I think this book may end up being a resource for those in law.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

“Meme the shit out of these guys (and Amy)—they deserve it.”

This book presents a series of Supreme Court Decisions post The Warren Court which demonstrate the Supreme Courts Bad Vibes™️

It parallels each topic and its various cases with a pop culture film or television show such as Mean Girls (the Court doesn’t want LBGTQ+ folk to sit with them) or Game of Thrones (winter is coming for voting rights).

I would probably rate this a 3.75 out of 5.

Pros:
There are many aspects of this book I enjoyed. It did bring legalese down to a level I think the average layman could parse out for the most part. It was fun tonally through its pop culture references, inside jokes, and parenthetical asides.

It was also incredibly well researched. There are (I counted) 969 unique sources used for this book, many of which are quoted directly in the text. 82 pages of notes. (I checked a few out to make sure direct quotes were direct…they are). Litman lets the Supreme Court literally speak for itself and the evidence is damning.

I think the ending call to action was solid as well. Vote. Make your choice heard. Be active in your local community/elections. We do have power as the people and we need to remember that.

Cons:
I think there are a few times Litman let the desire to be funny get in the way of her arguments. There were several times she refuted a conservative court choice by saying in a parenthetical “(because of course they did)” which really is a cop out, and stops the development of some of her important counter claims. I understand the goal was to be the cool girl, but it was laid on a little thick at times. That’s really my only complaint though.

There were some unavoidably dry moments. This is a nonfiction legal text after all. So the back and forth from pop culture or legalese wasn’t always solid.

Disclaimer:
As anyone who has been through my Goodreads knows, I vote left. My political beliefs align with the left. So I am already in a position to agree with Litman on her arguments. People who vote left will love it and people who vote right will hate it. I’m certain Litman is aware of this. I genuinely don’t think this is meant to sway people left, and I don’t think that will be the result for any conservative voter who reads it.

What a crucial read at this particular flashpoint in our democracy. This is a really palatable and accessible breakdown of the Supreme Court and it's downfalls that utilizes pop culture references to address the myriad of ways that our country is in the control of six bad actors in the Supreme Court. While I personally found the pop culture references a little much (some of them were stretched to their limits to fit the moment), I can see how for a more casual consumer of news about the judiciary might appreciate the references.

I will also say - this book suffers from what a lot of nonfiction from podcast hosts does, specifically a very clear bias where there's almost no page space devoted to mistakes on the other side of the aisle. I am a card-carrying Democrat, but I do believe that there was a way to bring up some of the moments where Democractic leadership or representatives at best fell short of preventing these disasters and at worst participated in them. There could have been a real honest interrogation of how, exactly, we let Mitch McConnell complete negate President Obama's ability to nominate a justice. Where was the outrage from the left? Where was Chuck Schumer? There has to be some accountability taken, because much of this didn't happen in a vacuum. (This WAS touched upon in the section on LGBTQ+ rights, given that Clinton passed multiple Acts that discriminated against queer folks; I just wish it had been more present throughout.

All told, this is a really important book for our chilling times. 4.5 stars. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Lawless is compelling and thought-provoking as an exploration of the often hidden and arbitrary nature of legal decision-making in the United States. Litman, a legal scholar, delves into the ways in which the law is frequently shaped by unspoken rules, biases, and systemic flaws that may not always align with the ideals of justice, fairness, or equality. She clearly knows her stuff.

The book offers an accessible yet deeply analytical look at how legal processes unfold behind closed doors, often beyond the reach of public scrutiny. The author dissects the practices and power dynamics that influence judicial decision-making, showing how judges, lawyers, and politicians can manipulate or bypass legal norms for political or personal gain. She brings to light the stark contrasts between the idealized vision of justice in the U.S. legal system and the reality that those who wield power are able to shape outcomes in ways that often defy accountability.

Litman’s writing is clear, engaging, and educational, breaking down complex legal principles for a general audience without sacrificing depth or insight. She uses real-world examples to illustrate the subtle yet pervasive ways in which laws and rulings are often influenced by extrajudicial forces. Her criticism of legal practices is both sharp and empathetic, acknowledging the human costs of a system that often fails those who are most vulnerable.

The book also examines how these hidden rules perpetuate inequality, especially for marginalized groups, and how they prevent real justice from being served. Litman calls for greater transparency, reform, and awareness of these "secret rules," urging readers to hold the legal system accountable to its stated principles.

My only real criticism is that I got tired of references to Barbie and Ken real fast. I get it, it was a good movie. However, in five years and beyond fewer and fewer will get the reference and it will get in the way of conveying otherwise great insight on the U.S. legal system.

The book is a vital read for anyone interested in understanding the complexities of the legal system and its shortcomings. Litman’s examination of how law can be subverted by unseen forces makes the book a powerful and timely critique of a system that claims to uphold justice, but often falls short in practice. It is an essential read for both legal professionals and those who seek a deeper understanding of the challenges facing the U.S. justice system today.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the digital ARC of Lawless, which releases May 13. One of my favorite podcasts is Strict Scrutiny, which follows the shenanigans of the US Supreme Court. Leah Litman is a cohost of that podcast, bringing her whit and snark to every episode. This book is no different. It is a no-holds-barred critique of the Supreme Court that provides historical context for how we got to the current state of the Court and its recent rulings while also being full of sass and pop culture references to keep you from getting too deep into your existential-dready-feels. It ends with an inspiring call to action for everyone to do their civic duty by voting at all levels of elections. I’ll definitely by buying a physical copy when this book is published!