The names are famous and infamous. These are some of the most consequential civil and criminal trials of our lifetime. For example:celebrity trials (Patty Hearst; OJ Simpson); Product Liability: (BigTobacco; Oxycontin); Treason: (Alfred Dreyfus; the Rosenbergs); WarCrimes: (William Calley, Nuremberg Tribunal); Libel: (City of Sandy Hook v Alex Jones; Holocaust denier David Irving v Deborah Lipstadt); First Amendment (American Nazi Party v City of Skokie); Public Corruption ( Rod Blagojevich v Illinois); Organized crime: (US v John Gotti); White collar crime: ( Enron; US v Bernie Madoff). We will begin with facts, then identify the parties and their competing interests. The heart of the case is the evidence marshaled by the parties, and who sustained the Burden of Proof. Finally, we will make our own judgment: we will look at the Court's final decision and see who benefitted and who was harmed.
