Carolina Journal Radio No. 924: State should take new steps to fight collusive lawsuits

If a state government agency wants to avoid complying with N.C. law, it might be able to accomplish its goal through a collusive lawsuit settlement. But state lawmakers could take steps this year to strike back against those settlements. Andy Jackson, director of the Civitas Center for Public Integrity at the John Locke Foundation, explains why the General Assembly should address the issue. The recent addition of Justice Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court has revived discussion of the legal concept of originalism. One ongoing debate among constitutional theorists involves the importance of court precedents for originalists like Barrett. That topic sparked a recent online forum sponsored by the Duke law school’s Federalist Society. Featured speaker Randy Barnett, constitutional law professor at Georgetown University, explained how originalists can and should respond to precedents. Gov. Roy Cooper set up a bipartisan group last year to examine health care access issues. During a recent meeting, John Locke Foundation health care expert Jordan Roberts discussed alternatives to the governor’s preferred policy option: Medicaid expansion. Free trade has faced attacks in recent years from high-profile leaders of both major political parties. Even those who support free trade diverge about how to put that support into practice. Donald Boudreaux, economics professor at George Mason University, contrasts free-trade “multilateralists” and “unilateralists.” He explained the difference during a featured presentation to the Classical Liberals of the Carolinas. After nearly 18 years of weekly programs, Carolina Journal Radio is signing off the air. As the John Locke Foundation and Civitas Institute combine forces to create a new major force in North Carolina’s freedom-forward movement, the new organization will promote its ideas in new ways and through new media platforms. Co-host Donna Martinez has been with Carolina Journal Radio since its earliest days. Mitch Kokai joined the show in 2005, roughly 2 1/2 years into the program’s run. As Martinez and Kokai end the program, they offer listeners new ideas for keeping up with insightful analysis of North Carolina’s top political and public policy stories.