⚖ Oral Arguments, with Context

Real court arguments, crisp audio, with context.

Court recordings can be difficult to follow, and many suffer from poor audio quality. This podcast enhances the audio, provides a brief introduction to each case, and explains legal concepts that may be unfamiliar to some listeners.

We hope these enhancements make oral argument recordings easier to understand, more accessible, and more enjoyable to listen to.

Apple Podcasts Spotify YouTube /feed.xml Open RSS Status

Jorge Lujan v. FMCSA — D.C. Cir. (Sep 15, 2026)

No. 26-1032 Argued September 15, 2026 Published October 3, 2026

The D.C. Circuit hears Jorge Lujan v. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. In February 2026, the agency issued a rule narrowing eligibility for non-domiciled commercial driver's licenses, a license category used by some immigrants working here. For foreign-domiciled applicants, work permits, known as EADs, no longer suffice; applicants must hold one of three specified visa types. That excludes many work-authorized people, including asylum seekers and recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. For existing drivers, losing the ability to renew threatens their livelihoods driving trucks or buses. Two drivers and two unions petitioned this court to set the rule aside, alongside a related challenge by King County, Washington. The court declined to pause the rule while the cases proceeded. The challengers say the restrictions lack a reasoned safety basis and exceed the agency's authority. The government says they address inaccessible foreign driving records and licensing-document errors.

Jorge Lujan v. FMCSA (No. 26-1032) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, argued September 15, 2026.

Sources
Argument audio — D.C. Circuit official recording:https://media.cadc.uscourts.gov/recordings/docs/2026/09/26-1032.mp3
Argument date and counsel — D.C. Circuit official listing:https://media.cadc.uscourts.gov/recordings/bydate/2026/9
Rule and agency's explanation — February 13, 2026 Federal Register final rule:https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-02-13/pdf/2026-02965.pdf
Drivers' and unions' account and claims — filed opening brief, August 5, 2026 (advocacy):https://www.citizen.org/wp-content/uploads/2026.08.05-Final-Rivera-Lujan-Pets-Opening-Brief.pdf
Earlier refusal to pause the rule — D.C. Circuit May 5, 2026 order and statement (not a final merits ruling):https://media.cadc.uscourts.gov/orders/docs/2026/05/26-1032LDSN2.pdf
Consolidation and counsel appearances — public appellate docket entries displayed by Justia:https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/cadc/26-1046
Wendy Liu's organization — Public Citizen attorney biography:https://www.citizen.org/about/person/wendy-liu/
Administrative review grounds — 5 U.S.C. § 706, official U.S. Code text:https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title5/html/USCODE-2024-title5-partI-chap7-sec706.htm

0:00
0:00