iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Many thanks to @lsolum.bsky.social for "highly recommending" my new article, Legality Canons.

Reposted by Joel Johnson

Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Vanderbilt Law Review will be publishing my latest, “Legality Canons.” It argues for a new way to understand many of the so-called substantive canons that the Supreme Court now employs. 🔗 👇🏻

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

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Laura Abelson @lauragabelson.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

I have a new essay forthcoming in the Texas Law Review about chatbots and privacy, this time with respect to the Fourth Amendment. In it, I argue that chatbot data deserves protection equal to location data after Chatrie v. US. The full draft will be up soon, but for now here is the abstract:

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Andrew Jennings @andrewkjennings.com · 12/08/2026

I've been thinking about how to connect legal scholars with practitioners. So, I'm starting a monthly digest for law-firm/bar-association CLE/training managers to identify profs who're available to speak on practice-relevant topics. More info at PracticalScholarship.com. Feel free to share/repost!

practicalscholarship.com

PracticalScholarship.com

A free monthly email digest connecting CLE managers with legal scholars available to present their research. No login or registration required.

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Reposted by Joel Johnson

Jake Charles @jacobdcharles.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

NEW: 5th Cir. 2nd Am decision on the felon prohibitor shows the problems w/ Bruen. The circuit precedent is confusing, inconsistent & unpredictable. @joeljohnson13.bsky.social & I are working on a project about the rule-of-law problems w/ these kinds of cases. www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub...

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Shalev Gad Roisman @shalevroisman.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

New draft paper on SSRN: "Fact Avoidance," forthcoming in the Harvard Law Review Supreme Court Issue. This Essay identifies a recurring feature where the Court decides presidential power cases entirely on legal grounds without engaging at all with the facts /1 papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

papers.ssrn.com

Fact Avoidance

<p><i><span>The legality of the President’s exercise of statutory power depends on questions of both law and fact. Yet courts often focus exclusively on the for

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Jake Charles @jacobdcharles.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

Was great to be back on Doug Berman’s Drugs on the Docket podcast with my friend & colleague @joeljohnson13.bsky.social to break down the Hemani decision & the Supreme Court’s many Second Amendment failings. 👇 Full episode: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s... youtu.be/TfxIjlZFdNQ?...

youtu.be

U.S. v. Hemani Decision | S4 E3 Teaser | Drugs on the Docket #shorts #podcast #supremecourt

YouTube video by The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

In Chatrie, I found the discussion about whether reaching the "search" question was appropriate to be interesting. At the other place, @epps.bsky.social noted that he thought it was appropriate to allow law to evolve. I tend to agree. But it points to a larger issue in 4A litigation. 🧵1/

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

We’re starting a space company. Fast tracking an IPO with an anticipated trillion-dollar valuation . Who wants in?

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Sarah Lawsky @sarahlawsky.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

Now in beta: explore all years of reported entry-level law school hiring data by doing your own slicing and dicing. www.lawskyprojects.org/explore

lawskyprojects.org

Lawsky Projects

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

It was so much fun to be a guest on the Drugs on the Docket podcast alongside my colleague, @jacobdcharles.bsky.social We discussed Hemani, the pending SCOTUS case involving a 2A challenge to the federal statute banning gun possession by unlawful drug users. 🔗👇🏻

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

It is an honor to receive this year’s Dean’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship.

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Laura Abelson @lauragabelson.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

I’m excited to share that my latest article, “The Multidimensions of AI Chatbots as Evidence,” is now forthcoming in the U.C. Davis Law Review. The abstract is below, and I plan to have it up on SSRN soon.

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Jimmy Hoover @jimmyhoover.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

SCOOP: Federal judiciary approves new Supreme Court defender office to help represent indigent defendants at #SCOTUS. Its full-time director will serve as a counterweight to the U.S. solicitor general in federal criminal cases. The first will be former Kagan clerk and SG atty Ashley Robertson.

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

Yale Law Journal (@yalelawjournal.bsky.social) will be publishing my latest, “The New Criminal Docket and the Clemency Court.” It explores how SCOTUS is no longer using its criminal merits docket for broad constitutional reform, opting instead for targeted relief for the fortunate few.

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Jake Charles @jacobdcharles.bsky.social · 26/02/2026

Check out my colleague @joeljohnson13.bsky.social’s fascinating post on how the Supreme Court’s analysis in the tariff’s case should impact the way Court decides the major Second Amendment case that will be argued next week 👇👇 open.substack.com/pub/divideda...

open.substack.com

Guest Post: The Learning Resources Roadmap for Hemani

by Joel S. Johnson

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 16/02/2026

Thanks for the shoutout, @espinsegall.bsky.social! In addition to the amicus brief, I shared my views on Hemani here: bsky.app/profile/joel...

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Patrick Bryant @patrickbryant.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

Another! The District of Puerto Rico FPD Office is hiring an appellate attorney! Your wardrobe will include sandals for San Juan and a parka for oral argument trips to Boston! www.fd.org/sites/defaul...

Hiring announcement for appellate attorney at the District of Puerto Rico Federal Public Defender's Office, available at https://www.fd.org/sites/default/files/public/Employment/Vacancy-Files/2026-01-appellate-afpd.pdf (page 1)

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Scholastica Law Reviews @scholasticalr.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

Pepperdine Law Review - Annual Volume is now open and accepting submissions on Scholastica! Submit your article here: pepperdine-law-review-essays.schola… #LRSubmissions

Image of a law school library with the words "law reviews are opening!" and #LRSubmissions overlaid

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Jake Charles @jacobdcharles.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

Very excited that the Pepperdine Law Review will be hosting a symposium @pepperdine.bsky.social Caruso School of Law on 3/27, "The Second Amendment After Bruen & Rahimi: Revisiting History & Tradition"! We have a great lineup; register ⬇️ & stay tuned for updates. law.pepperdine.edu/law-review/s...

law.pepperdine.edu

Pepperdine Law Review Symposium 2026 | Pepperdine Caruso School of Law

The Pepperdine Caruso Law Review hosts annual symposia on timely topics from politics and reform to national security law. This page contains information for this year's symposium, including featured ...

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Reposted by Joel Johnson

Orin Kerr @orinkerr.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

BIG IN THE 4A WORLD: The Supreme Court has granted cert in Chatrie, the geofence warrant case, to decide the following Q: "Whether the execution of the geofence warrant violated the Fourth Amendment." (I assume this includes both whether a "search" happened and whether the warrant was lawful.)

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Jake Charles @jacobdcharles.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

How often can you read amicus briefs from colleagues at the same law school arguing for opposite sides in the same case?? Check out Joel’s super interesting brief urging the Court not to even reach the 2nd Am q. My amicus brief (w/ other 2A scholars) is here: www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/24...

supremecourt.gov

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

I’ve filed an amicus brief in Hemani, the pending case involving a #SecondAmendment challenge to 18 USC 922(g)(3). The case is perceived as a sequel to Bruen and Rahimi. My brief argues that the Court can avoid the constitutional thicket by narrowly construing the statute. 🧵

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Sam J. Merchant @sammerchant.bsky.social · 11/01/2026

Excited to announce that my book, REVOLUTION IN REDLINE, is finally out! I compile key docs leading to the Founding, then present the Founding Docs in "redline," visually tracking the drafters' edits to show how the text evolved. (The Founders didn't start from scratch, and they disagreed often.)1/6

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

It was a treat to celebrate Prof. Dick Howard, for whom I worked as a research assistant while in law school. He received the ABA Kutak Award in recognition of his incredible career.

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 07/01/2026

It was an honor to receive the Emerging Scholar Award from the AALS Legislation Section — especially while seated next to Bill Eskridge and Mary Ann Bernard (Phil Frickey’s widow). Thanks @kevintobia.bsky.social for the kind words about my work.

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

Later this week at #AALS, I’ll be presenting my new paper, The New Criminal Docket and the Clemency Court. The paper examines how the contemporary Supreme Court curates and resolves its criminal merits docket—and how that practice has quietly changed. 🧵

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Reposted by Joel Johnson

Jake Charles @jacobdcharles.bsky.social · 18/12/2025

Check out the @scotusblog.com post from my brilliant colleague @joeljohnson13.bsky.social on the upcoming 2nd Am case! Altho the Court could clarify the statute (& vagueness doctrine), I think there's real need for SCOTUS to clarify (ahem, vague) 2nd Am doctrine. www.scotusblog.com/2025/12/an-o...

scotusblog.com

An off-ramp for the court’s next big gun case

Please note that SCOTUS Outside Opinions constitute the views of outside contributors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SCOTUSblog or its staff. Last year, federal prosecutors obtained a ...

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 17/12/2025

I’m thrilled to see my latest, Major-Questions Lenity, in print in the Minnesota Law Review. 🔗 to the article ⬇️

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 14/11/2025

Over the next couple days, I’ll be participating in the Vanderbilt Law Criminal Justice Roundtable. It promises to be a great event with some terrific scholars and papers. I’m especially looking forward to hearing @richardre.bsky.social’s comments on my draft paper, “The Clemency Court.”

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Ellie Margolis @elliemargolis.bsky.social · 16/10/2025

This is madness. Today we had to send a message to our 1L students telling them it’s not a great idea to use the first drafts of their first legal writing assignments because the new OCI timeline is so early they are wondering if they should. #LegalWriting

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 15/10/2025

@johnpelwood.bsky.social correctly notes that some of the pending cases involving 2A challenges to 922(g)(3) have been relisted. But for reasons I point out in my amicus brief, Harris v. United States is better vehicle than any of the relisted petitions. bsky.app/profile/joel...

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 15/10/2025

It was a treat for me to interview @kannonshanmugam.bsky.social a few weeks ago, as part of the William French Lecture Series at Pepperdine. For those interested, the video of the interview is now available here: tinyurl.com/ym2ch986

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 14/10/2025

This morning, I filed a cert-stage amicus brief in support of the petitioner in Harris v. United States, one of several pending petitions raising a Second Amendment challenge to 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3), which makes it a crime for an "unlawful user" of drugs to possess a firearm. 🧵

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 14/10/2025

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Lawrence Solum @lsolum.bsky.social · 09/10/2025

Please help me get the word out about the new websites for Legal Theory Blog and the Legal Theory Lexicon. Reposting here and on other social media sites is great. It would be especially helpful if law school faculty members could send an email to their colleagues with the new addresses.

legaltheoryblog.com

Legal Theory Blog

Discover our latest articles and updates. Stay informed with recent posts that cover a variety of topics you care about!

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 03/10/2025

Honored to win the inaugural Emerging Scholar Award from the AALS Legislation and Law of the Political Process Section — based on my article Ad Hoc Constructions of Penal Statutes in the Notre Dame Law Review. 🔗⬇️

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 25/09/2025

I’m very much looking forward to this event tomorrow at Pepperdine with my friend and mentor, @kannonshanmugam.bsky.social. Join us tomorrow morning at 11 am!

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Joel Johnson @joeljohnson13.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

This semester, I’ve been experimenting with ways to use AI to enhance my work as a law professor. Here's a clip from a video explainer of one of my law review articles — Dealing with Dead Crimes, which was published in the Georgetown Law Journal in 2022. 🧵

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