The Japanese American incarceration during World War II is a black eye on U.S. history. In the four decades that followed, activists and community leaders waged what was ultimately a successful campaign for redress and reparations on behalf of those who were sent to the internment camps. On this episode, Professor Margaret Chon discusses how the reparations campaign built on groundwork laid during the Civil Rights Movement, and she explores how the decadeslong drive informs today's fight for racial justice in America.

DISCOVERY presented by UW Law

Redress, Reparations and the Fight for Racial Justice

California v. Texas is a case pending before the U.S. Supreme Court that is the first major challenge to the Affordable Care Act since the appointment of the court's newest justice. Over the past decade, the ACA has been surprisingly resilient despite constant legal battles — and this one certainly won't be the last. Health law expert Joan Altman has been on the front lines in Washington since the law's earliest days. She sheds light on what went down at oral arguments and discusses what we can infer from the justices' commentary.

Health Care is Complicated

Law students can be notoriously hard on themselves amid the pressure cooker that is law school. That stress, says Dr. Isaiah Pickens, manifests in a number of ways, including feelings of imposterism that can be hard to shake. 2020 certainly hasn't made the experience any easier, but Pickens asserts there are still important approaches that strengthen the mental muscles that foster resilience in the face of difficult challenges. He shares key learnings from his recent student-focused training hosted by UW Law.

Fight, Flight or Freeze

When COVID-19 first gained a foothold in Washington, Taya Briley knew her world was about to be turned upside down. As executive vice president and general counsel of the WSHA, Briley is one of the Washington medical community's key leaders tasked with spearheading response efforts to the rapidly evolving legal issues raised by the virus. Working on behalf of the state's 114 community hospitals, Briley remains at the vanguard of the complex challenges hospitals must continue to navigate today. She joins DISCOVERY to share her experiences lawyering in the time of COVID-19.

Off and Running

The one-two punch of COVID-19 and political efforts to undermine the voting process has made this U.S. presidential election unlike any other. Yet despite these challenges, mail-in and early voting are driving record turnout across the country. Now with the election just one week away, what if anything should voters be aware of as they head to polls? On the season three premiere of DISCOVERY presented by UW Law, Free Speech for People Legal Director Ron Fein dispels myths about, shares insights into and discusses reforms needed to improve access to the ballot box in 2020 and beyond.

(I Hope I Can) VOTE!

The Trump Administration has pursued one of the most aggressive deregulatory agendas since the Reagan years, leveraging a variety of political and legal tactics to do so. As the United States ramps up toward the 2020 election, University of Chicago Law School Professor Jonathan Masur details how the Trump Administration has used executive orders, cost-benefit analyses and the application of the Chevron deference principle to roll back regulations across American industries.

Two for One

Leading forensics expert Dr. Geoffrey Baird is no stranger to the courtroom. Over the years, he has been called upon regularly to share insights and analysis in some of the country's biggest, most high-profile cases. A litigator's abilities to effectively wield forensic evidence and present expert testimony can make or break a case, which is why Dr. Baird is also a frequent guest in UW Law classrooms. He discusses how law students can hone their skills and use forensics to their advantage in court.

Interpretation and Fact

Jails and prisons are dangerous incubators of the COVID-19 virus, and incarcerated individuals constitute one of the country's most at-risk populations. This unprecedented reality has amplified discussions around incarceration in the United States, accelerating advocacy efforts as calls for reform get louder. La Rond Baker has spent her career in the legal profession spearheading civil rights and criminal justice initiatives in Washington. She joins to discuss the pandemic's disproportionate effects on prison populations, and she outlines potential impacts that could stretch beyond the virus' reach.  

Incarcerated during COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit gig economy workforces particularly hard, amplifying the vulnerabilities workers face when they lack the same financial and medical protections as other jobs. Now, these challenges are being taken up in court as contractors, freelancers, app-based workers and more struggle to get by in the midst of the crisis. On this episode, Orly Lobel — a labor law expert and University of San Diego School of Law professor of law — takes a deep dive into the gig economy in the time of COVID-19 and explores potential lasting solutions to the most pressing issues.

The Duty of Loyalty

Along her path from the classroom to the courthouse, Justice Raquel Montoya-Lewis experienced the unique challenges and pressures people of color face in a field where individuals like herself remain vastly underrepresented. Today, the UW Law alumna brings those experiences to her new leadership role on the Washington Supreme Court after becoming the first Native American to serve on the state’s highest bench. On this episode of DISCOVERY presented by UW Law, Justice Montoya-Lewis shares her remarkable journey to her seat on Washington’s highest bench, and she discusses the issues — and opportunities — legal institutions face in becoming more diverse, equitable and inclusive.

A Seat at the Table

What can laws governing the natural world tell us about those that govern societies? According to Ted Sichelman: quite a bit. Employing a wealth of mathematical research, thought experiments and some truly mind-bending equations, the University of San Diego professor of law breaks down the ground-breaking quantitative measures he has developed to analyze legal systems. He goes on to outline the structural parallels between scientific and social laws, and how his findings apply to the real world. Get your calculators out for this one — you're going to need 'em.

Determining the Indeterminate

U.S. Supreme Court oral arguments provide a unique window into decision-making at the highest level. In fact, the ways justices argue may tell us more about potential outcomes than even the arguments themselves. Tonja Jacobi, Stanford Clinton Sr. and Zylpha Kilbride Clinton Research Professor of Law at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, has conducted years of empirical research in this space. On this episode, she illustrates how patterns of interruptions, speaking time — and more than a little "mansplaining" — among justices and attorneys inform predictions for the court's most consequential decisions.

Pardon the Inter...

When was the last time you read every page of Senate bill, processed each word of a mortgage agreement, or even parsed through an app's terms and conditions? If you're inclined to scroll straight to "accept," you're not alone. And as law professor and author Wendy Wagner writes in a new book, this idea of information overload is purposefully baked into the foundation of America's most important institutions. On this episode of DISCOVERY, Wagner discusses examples from politics, science, finance and more to illustrate how comprehensibility of information — or lack thereof — negatively impacts consumers.

Terms of Service

As Washington's 22nd governor, Gov. Christine Gregoire spent two terms grappling with questions around middle-income housing, transportation, workforce development and more, all over a time of unprecedented change in the Emerald State. Now as a private citizen, Gov. Gregoire continues to attack the same issues head on, leading a first-of-its-kind coalition comprising the leaders from the region's most influential corporations. On a very special episode of DISCOVERY, Gov. Gregoire takes a deep dive into the biggest challenges facing Seattle — and how the Pacific Northwest's top companies are coming together to address them.

Show Them the Way

We live in an age when algorithmic decision-making impacts more of our lives than ever before, from college admissions and job offers to financial opportunities and more. But does relying on automation for these kinds of crucial decisions actually amplify, rather than eliminate, the implicit bias it is supposed to curb? Law and technology expert Ifeoma Ajunwa argues algorithmic decision-making can in fact hide bias under the veneer of objectivity — and gaps in current legal architecture foment the ability to do so. She joins DISCOVERY to explore present challenges and how viewing the issue through a legal lens provides opportunities for potential solutions.

Sincerely, Algorithms

DISCOVERY is a podcast presented by the University of Washington School of Law in Seattle, WA, featuring distinguished guests discussing today's biggest social, political and legal issues. Episodes focus on a diverse mix of legal and legal-adjacent topics through intimate conversations with experts, speakers and leaders from around the globe. For more, visit law.uw.edu/podcast.

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DISCOVERY presented by UW Law

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