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Noah Chauvin

@noahchauvin.bsky.social
2.8K followers 877 following 636 posts

Associate Professor of Law at the University of Oklahoma College of Law. Studies free speech, surveillance, and the production of legal scholarship.

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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 13/10/2026
I began smiling at “falls between the couch cushions of two independent literatures,” and started laughing out loud at “fries the existing literature’s leftover rice.”
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LSM @slukemorgan.bsky.social · 12/10/2026
the first ever comprehensive treatment of the issue of novelty in legal scholarship is now available:
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Anna E. Carpenter @annacarpenter.bsky.social · 12/10/2026
Congratulations to @uofoklahomalaw.bsky.social Professor @msmith750.bsky.social for having his coauthored article “CertiorarAI” (with Alexandra Klein) accepted for publication by the Washburn Law Journal! The latest draft is available here: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
For more on foreign malign influence operations (and why I think censorship is the wrong response to them), see this essay I wrote for @knightcolumbia.org last year: knightcolumbia.org/content/fore...
knightcolumbia.org
Foreign Influence and the Immorality of Censorship
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
But as of right now, nothing the PM has shared undercuts the legitimacy of the referendum. And based on what we know about the efficacy of Russia's 2016 influence campaigns, it's unlikely that its Brexit-related efforts had any meaningful effect.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
All of which is to say, it's good that PM Burnham has acknowledged Russian efforts to influence the Brexit referendum. I look forward to seeing more information from the UK government on what those efforts looked like, and to hearing from researchers about what effect those efforts might have had.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
But there are things states can do to reduce the effectiveness of foreign malign influence campaigns, such as identifying and debunking them. media.fdd.org/wp-content/u...
Screenshot on an FDD report on efforts to influence 2024 US elections.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
This was because Russian social media efforts basically only reached people who were already true believers. That's not to say that more sophisticated influence campaigns couldn't be more effective! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Exposure to the Russian Internet Research Agency foreign influence campaign on Twitter in the 2016 US election and its relationship to attitudes and voting behavior - Nature Communications
Here, using longitudinal survey and Twitter data, the authors examine the relationship between exposure to Russian Internet Research Agency activities on Twitter and voting behavior and attitudes...
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
However, the available evidence suggests that these influence campaigns aren't very effective. Again drawing on the US experience: Researchers studying Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election concluded it had no "more than a minor influence" on individual beliefs or voting.
Screenshot from Eady et al. paper discussing Russian social media influence campaigns on the 2016 US presidential election.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
That's not particularly surprising. We know that malign states frequently try to clandestinely influence their rivals' political processes. In the US, for example, Russia, Iran, and the PRC have all tried to increase political divisions and influence election outcomes.
archive.dni.gov
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
A 🧵 on why this likely isn't a huge deal. In reading stories like this, it's crucial to distinguish between two issues: 1. Was a foreign state attempting to influence domestic politics? 2. Was a foreign state successful in influencing domestic politics? Here, PM Burnham is answering the former.
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State Court Report @statecourtreport.org · 09/10/2026
The Oklahoma constitution requires a public vote every 20 years over whether to hold a state constitutional convention. But there hasn't been such a vote in over 50 years. The requirement is now at the center of an inter-branch conflict, writes @msmith750.bsky.social.
statecourtreport.org
Oklahoma’s Governor and Legislature Spar Over Calling Constitutional Convention
State lawmakers long neglected the requirement of putting to the public whether to hold a state constitutional convention. Recently, the governor proclaimed he can force the question.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
“AI tried to commit immigration fraud” might be the thing that gets President Trump to turn on the tech companies. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/09/t...
nytimes.com
Anthropic Agents Tried to Fill Out Visa Forms on State Dept. Website (Gift Article)
The Philadelphia Police Department said the agents had also sent in a false homicide tip. The incidents led the White House to call for better disclosure of rogue A.I. behavior.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
It makes me so happy to see students I've taught sharing that they've passed the bar and are beginning their new attorney jobs. It's a privilege to get to help them on their way!
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
An interesting (and short!) essay on what lessons the Iran war can teach about the War Powers Resolution. Curtis A. Bradley, The Iran Conflict and the War Powers Resolution. papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
papers.ssrn.com
The Iran Conflict and the War Powers Resolution
<p><span>This Essay examines the operation of the War Powers Resolution (WPR) during the 2026 U.S. military conflict with Iran and considers what that episode r
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
“On How to Disagree,” by Michael L. Smith.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Tight security at the Choctaw Nation Judicial Center!
Two signs are pictured. One warns that no electronic devices are permitted in the courthouse; the other warns that guard geese are on duty.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Took me a second to remember this was the title of the book I’d requested.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Really looking forward to the "reply all" debacle breaking out once again on the AALS listserv.
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Anna E. Carpenter @annacarpenter.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
@uofoklahomalaw.bsky.social Professor @staceytovino.bsky.social gave a CLE for the ABA Section on State, Local, and Tribal Government Law on "Government Use of Health Data: HIPAA, Oversight, and Responsible Data Governance.” Description here: learningcenter.americanbar.org/courses/332918
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
When I finally write my John Yoo biography (it's coming, post-tenure), I'm titling it "Of All People."
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Walter Olson @walterolson.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
This, by Nick Gillespie, is like Nikole Hannah-Jones' piece in that it's 1) frank and self-revelatory; 2) going to be like applying a cheese grater to many raw sensitivities.
reason.com
Like Nikole Hannah-Jones, my parents put ideology over pedagogy in sending me to Catholic school
When it comes to education, are parents always fighting the last war?
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Michael Smith @msmith750.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
It's time for the Supreme Court to use AI to decide what cases it will hear! "CertiorarAI," forthcoming in the Washburn Law Review (coauthored with @alexklein.bsky.social). papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
CertiorarAI
66 Washburn Law Journal (forthcoming 2027)

32 Pages Posted:
Alexandra L. Klein
Washington and Lee University - School of Law

Michael L. Smith
University of Oklahoma - College of Law

Date Written: October 01, 2026

Abstract
Each term, the Supreme Court must sift through thousands of petitions for certiorari and select those that are worthy of decisions on the merits. This process isn’t working terribly well. The number of cases the Court hears is low and continues to decline. It’s hard to tell how much time and effort the Court spends on these determinations—or how seriously it takes a process in which the default is denial—because its analysis and votes on case selection aren’t publicly available. We propose a solution: hand the selection of cases over to artificial intelligence to make these thousands of certiorari decisions in minutes. We call this new process CertiorarAI.

Sounds good, doesn’t it? No? You got us. We hate this proposal. It would entrench preexisting patterns of case selection through biased training data, it would make the certiorari process a black box, and it would outsource work requiring careful deliberation to an automated process. CertiorarAI: terrible in every way. 

Yet these same criticisms also apply to the Court’s existing procedures for case selection. The Court exhibits strategic patterns and preferences in its exercise of near-absolute docket discretion, its votes and deliberations over certiorari petitions aren’t public, and much of the work of sifting through and analyzing these petitions is outsourced to clerks. CertiorarAI (and its well-deserved criticism) illuminates these shortcomings and the need for meaningful scrutiny of the Court’s docket selection processes.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
A question for folks who follow SCOTUS more closely than I do: How often does the government ask the Court to take up a case on the merits before a court of appeals has ruled on it as a replacement for a case that was mooted after the Court agreed to hear it? www.scotusblog.com/2026/09/trum...
scotusblog.com
Trump administration takes important immigration question back to the Supreme Court
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Quinn Yeargain @yeargain.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
while rereading Meyer v. Nebraska, I unearthed a small story that I don't recall reading about before. in fact, the limited coverage of this story that I've seen in secondary sources totally misunderstands what happened. so here it is: why was the foreign language bill an "emergency" bill?
CHAPTER 249.
(Senate File No. 24.)
[Introduced by Mr. Siman, Mr. Reed, Mr. Ainlay and Mr. F. G. Johnson.]

AN ACT relating to the teaching of foreign languages in the State of Nebraska

Be it Enacted by the People of the State of Nebraska:

Section 1. No person, individually or as a teacher, shall, in any private, denominational, parochial or public school, teach any subject to any person in any language other than the English language.

Sec. 2. Languages, other than the English language, may be taught as languages only after a pupil shall have attained and successfully passed the eighth grade as evidenced by a certificate of graduation issued by the county superintendent of the county in which the child resides.

Sec. 3. Any person who violates any of the provisions of this act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction, shall be subject to a fine of not less than twenty-five dollars ($25), nor more than one hundred dollars ($100) or be confined in the county jail for any period not exceeding thirty days for each offense.

Sec. 4. Whereas, an emergency exists, this act shall be in force from and after its passage and approval

Approved, April 9, 1919.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
He was. Post-surgery it’s been a bit rough.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
*Sigh*
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
One of the nice things about social media is that it provides constant reminders that being good at one thing doesn’t make you good at all things.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
We had our first simulation in my national security lawyering class today. Next time, I'm going to have to bring a burn bag, because this is what the recycling bin looked like after class.
A recycling bin containing documents bearing classification markings.
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Quinn Yeargain @yeargain.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
this is very interesting, not least because Pangram only tagged it as 48% AI-generated! setting aside the metaphysical question of what it really means for something to be "AI-generated," that suggests a pretty big problem with the supposedly flawless AI detector.
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Anthony Michael Kreis @anthonymkreis.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Me to the FDA:
static.klipy.com
Do Something Meme
ALT: Do Something Meme
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I've been noodling on this for a couple of days, and I'm not sure I agree. I think the information value of judicial law review articles is probably worth it. (I feel the same way about judges posting on social media or writing op-eds.)
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I’ve also started seeing it in judicial opinions.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
A bit labor-intensive, but you might be able to find that out by looking at journals’ mastheads. When I was on the W&M Law Review, our admins were on the masthead. (Not sure how universal that practice is, though.)
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Just as OU faculty must take First Amendment training, Oklahoma law mandates free speech training for students at the state's public colleges. I've posted an essay (forthcoming in the Oklahoma Bar Journal) that covers the non-campus-specific aspects of the training. papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
papers.ssrn.com
Free Speech at Oklahoma's Public Colleges and Universities
This essay is a modified version of a free speech training for new students at Oklahoma's public colleges and universities.  It covers the non-institution-
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Michael Smith @msmith750.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
My essay, "The Absence of Original Meaning in Second Amendment Cases," is forthcoming in the Quinnipiac Law Review! papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.... I argue that the Court's Second Amendment cases from 2022 to last term indicate an increasing unwillingness to engage in historical, textual meaning.
The Absence of Original Meaning in Second Amendment Cases
45 Quinnipiac Law Review (Forthcoming 2027)

23 Pages Posted: Last revised: 21 Sep 2026
Michael L. Smith
University of Oklahoma - College of Law

Date Written: September 21, 2026

Abstract
In New York State Rifle and Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen, the Supreme Court set forth a two-step analysis for adjudicating Second Amendment challenges. At step one, courts are to consider whether the behavior the challenged law restricts falls under the Second Amendment’s plain text. If it does, courts should proceed to step two, where the burden is on the government to demonstrate that the law is consistent with a historical tradition of analogous firearm restrictions. Proving such a tradition is difficult, and results remain unpredictable. Governments and courts hoping to avoid such a historical quagmire might be inclined to decide cases at the first step of the analysis by concluding that a case involves individuals, activities, or arms beyond the Second Amendment’s plain text. One might think that the Court would be receptive to such arguments, as it has emphasized the importance of the original meaning of the Second Amendment’s text in its early cases.

One would be wrong. The Court’s latest rulings in United States v. Hemani and Wolford v. Lopez render Bruen’s first step illusory. In Hemani, the Court bypassed the first step, concluding it had been conceded. More significantly, in Wolford, the Court relied on a prolonged hypothetical analysis of conduct the law at issue might burden, and limited consideration of historical evidence to the second step of the analysis where the burden is on the government to prove up a historical tradition that grounds the modern restriction. If such analysis is enough to overcome Bruen’s step one, just about anything will.

This development demonstrates the Court’s unwillingness to engage with original public meaning—an approach that Justices and scholars frequently proclaim to be…
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Quinn Yeargain @yeargain.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
I can't even claim credit for this one; all credit to @toreydolan.bsky.social for the idea behind this masterpiece
Carlill v. Carbolic Smoke Ball Company, depicted by a modified image of Steven Crowder sitting at the table with a banner reading "change my mind," such that the Carbolic advertisement is superimposed over Crowder's stupid face and the text on the banner reads "use me and you won't get attacked by the flu, change my mind and I'll pay you 100 pounds"
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Ha!
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Corey Rayburn Yung @coreyryung.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
A free society cannot allow the government to disappear people in order to cutoff access to legal remedies.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
I’m also not sure I can get too exercised about an administrator using AI to help draft op-eds or emails. (Academic works are a slightly different matter, but even that is a bit field-dependent, I think. If a scientist is using AI to help communicate the results of experiments… 🤷)
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
That is correct.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Disappearing detainees is unacceptable practice from a government subject to the rule of law. apnews.com/article/ice-...
apnews.com
AP Exclusive: ICE hides locations of thousands of detainees with final removal orders
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has stopped publicly revealing where it is holding most detainees who are subject to final deportation orders, in a move that has made it harder for lawyers an...
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Michael Smith @msmith750.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
State constitution craze has caught on in Oklahoma! (My op-ed us here: www.oklahoman.com/story/opinio.... A longer treatment is here: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....)
Oklahoman opinion page with headline "Constitution Confusion" with three columns on state constitutional convention vote.Close up of the page featuring my op ed!
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Thank you for sharing this.
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Jerry Edwards @jerryedwards.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
What a powerful, thought-provoking piece. I highly recommend you read it. I am still sitting with it. All I really have to say at present is we, as a nation, need to address educational inequality.
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Anna E. Carpenter @annacarpenter.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
@uofoklahomalaw.bsky.social Professor @staceytovino.bsky.social gave an invited plenary address, "High Stakes Privacy: HIPAA, SUD, and Gambling Disorder," at the 2026 Appalachian Addiction and Prescription Drug Abuse Conference (AAPDAC), held in Morgantown, West Virginia.
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Noah Smith-Drelich @nsmithdrelich.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
"Highly Recommended!"
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Allowing the unwitting target of your investigation buy you coffee at what he thinks is a casual meeting is deeply messed up. magazine.uchicago.edu/1006/feature...
Screenshot from U Chicago alumni magazine profile of Keith Weissman

Weissman was, in fact, in serious trouble. Still unaware of the investigation closing in on him, he put off the agent’s request to meet right away in Boston and made an appointment for about a week-and-a-half later, after he returned to Washington. Over coffee—Weissman’s treat, as he recalls—he and two agents made small talk about baseball and discussed Defense Department Iran expert Lawrence A. Franklin. Twice in the previous month, Weissman and Franklin had met to discuss U.S. policy toward Iran, a shared area of expertise.
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Noah Chauvin @noahchauvin.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
I'm re-reading Conor Clarke's "Is the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court Really a Rubber Stamp?" as I prepare to teach about FISA tomorrow, and I think it may be the Platonic ideal of a law student paper. Just beautifully done. www.stanfordlawreview.org/wp-content/u...
stanfordlawreview.org
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