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How a Covid-Era Scramble Transformed [U.S.] Supreme Court Arguments

Aug 13, 2026

When the justices returned to the bench in October 2021, their approach to oral arguments had undergone a revolution. The aftershocks are still reverberating. The justices allowed live audio of the arguments, letting the public hear what went on in the courtroom in real time from anywhere in the world. They also revised the format of the arguments, adopting an ungainly hybrid that started with a familiar free-for-all barrage of questions and ended with one-by-one queries in order of the justices’ seniority.