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Jackie Gardina

Jackie Gardina

Host of SideBar

Jackie Gardina is the Dean of the Colleges of Law with campuses in Santa Barbara and Ventura. 

Dean Gardina has written extensively about bankruptcy, civil procedure, tribal law, and constitutional issues related to the LGBTQ community. She was involved in the don’t ask don’t tell repeal efforts as well as the effort to secure marriage equality in Vermont. You can find her writings in scholarly journals, the Huffington Post, and the Washington Post. She recently completed an Ed.D. in Higher Education Management at University of Pennsylvania.

Before attending law school, Gardina received an MSW and worked as an outpatient clinical social worker. Six years later, she graduated magna cum laude from Boston College Law School. Upon graduation, she clerked for Chief Judge William Young of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts and then for the Honorable Levin Campbell of the First Circuit Court of Appeals. In addition, she was an associate at the Boston firm of Choate, Hall, and Stewart, where she practiced in the commercial litigation department.

Host of
Recent Episodes
October 3, 2023

Why Does the US Criminalize Legal Immigration? with Cesar García Hernández

Nationally recognized immigration law expert, Professor Cesar García Hernández of The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law talks about the intersection of criminal and immigration law, including the rights of migrants in...

September 19, 2023

The Best Beloved Thing is Justice! with Lisa Kloppenberg

Professor and Dean Emerita Lisa Kloppenberg, author of The Best Beloved Thing is Justice: The Life of Dorothy Wright Nelson, discusses her mentor, colleague, and friend. Judge Nelson was a true trailblazer...

September 5, 2023

Has this Supreme Court Lost Its Balance? with NPR Legal Correspondent Nina Totenberg

Supreme Court Correspondent Nina Totenberg discusses her fifty-year career as a reporter covering some of the most important Supreme Court decisions of our time. As a front-row witness to history, with unique...

August 15, 2023

Is the Supreme Court Amassing Unconstitutional Power? with Stephen Vladeck

Professor Stephen Vladeck, author of the New York Times bestselling book, The Shadow Docket: How the Supreme Court Uses Stealth Rulings to Amass Power and Undermine the Republic, discusses how the Supreme...

August 1, 2023

Why Do We (Still) Fail to Respect Women Under the Constitution? with Julie Suk

Professor Julie Suk, author of After Misogyny: How the Law Fails Women and What to Do About It, discusses the legal and economic framework in the United States that fails to fairly recognize...

July 18, 2023

Has America Abandoned the Promise of a Multi-Racial Democracy? with Dr. Peniel Joseph

After 200 years of racial and ethnic struggle, including the Civil War, Reconstruction, the Civil Rights Era, and Black Lives Matter, where are we now in the effort to achieve the promise...

July 4, 2023

Was the Constitution Ever Really Color-Blind? with Damon Hewitt

Damon T. Hewitt, President and Executive Director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law, discusses Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina and the Supreme Court’s...

June 20, 2023

Police Reform is NOT the Answer, Only Community Reform Will Create Lasting Change, with Dr. Thaddeus Johnson

Dr. Thaddeus Johnson, former police officer, Senior Fellow at the Council on Criminal Justice, and Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice and Criminology at Georgia State University, discusses his research and unique insights...

June 6, 2023

Who is “Whispering” in the Supreme Court’s Ears? with Hazelton & Hinkle

Professors Morgan Hazelton and Rachael Hinkle have published a fascinating book on one of the mysteries behind Supreme Court decision-making. “Persuading the Supreme Court: The Significance of Briefs in Judicial Decision-Making” combines...

May 16, 2023

Technology-Driven Justice: Can Al and Big Data Revolutionize the Courts? with Nicole Clark

Nicole Clark, lawyer, entrepreneur, and CEO of Trellis, discusses how the award-winning technology start-up she founded is democratizing access to the law by making state trial court records more accessible and bringing...

May 2, 2023

Can We Trust this Supreme Court with the Constitution? with Elie Mystal

The indomitable, outspoken, brilliant, and thoughtful Elie Mystal, author, columnist, and commentator, joins cohosts Jackie Gardina and Mitch Winick to discuss his book Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy’s Guide to...

April 18, 2023

Supreme Court Justices Behaving Badly – What Has History Taught Us? with Judge Margaret McKeown

Judge Margaret McKeown discusses her new book Citizen Justice: The Environmental Legacy of William O. Douglas and her research on the Supreme Court Justice’s controversial approach to advocacy both on and off...

April 4, 2023

Is Conservative Christian Discrimination Now a Protected Class? with Nomi Stolzenberg

Law Professor Nomi Stolzenberg discusses the US Supreme Court’s consideration of Conservative Christian ideology as a new protected class under the First Amendment. Seven of the nine members of the Supreme Court...

March 21, 2023

Judicial Misconduct – How Should We Respond? with Charles Geyh

Professor Charles Geyh, an expert in judicial conduct, discusses the ethical obligations of judges and the options available (or not) when judges break the rules – including the U.S. Supreme Court justices....

March 7, 2023

Who’s Writing All These Crazy State Laws? with Joel Rogers

Professor Joel Rogers describes the rise of American Legislative Council (ALEC), the organization responsible drafting model bills introduced across the country with devastating impacts upon public education, voting rights, and environmental protections,...

February 21, 2023

Who Do State Legislatures Actually Represent? with Buffy Wicks

In this SideBar episode, California Assemblymember, Buffy Wicks discusses the power of state legislatures to protect fundamental constitutional rights and the importance of diverse representation.

February 4, 2023

Book Bans and Democracy – Can they coexist? with Suzanne Nossel

In this episode of SideBar, Suzanne Nossel, the Chief Executive Officer of PenAmerica, discusses the dangers of book bans and educational gag orders to our core democratic values. She places these laws...

January 21, 2023

Artificial Intelligence (Al) – Who do you trust? with Orly Lobel

Can we harness AI to enhance equality?

January 7, 2023

Lady Justice with Dahlia Lithwick (part 2)

Legitimacy of the Supreme Court and the Important Role Lawyers Play in Our Society

January 7, 2023

Lady Justice with Dahlia Lithwick (part 1)

Women, the Law, and the Battle to Save America

December 16, 2022

“Vigilante Federalism’ with David Noll (Part 2)

The New Weapon in the Culture Wars

December 3, 2022

‘Vigilante Federalism’ with David Noll (part 1)

Is “Vigilante Federalism” the new weapon in battles over abortion, religion, sexuality, gender, and race?

November 16, 2022

Reclaiming Democracy, with David Pepper (part 2)

David Pepper returns with a wake-up call to reclaim our democracy.

November 8, 2022

It’s the Statehouses Stupid!

State legislatures, often ignored, play a significant role in deciding our rights, including the right to vote.

November 5, 2022

It’s the Statehouses Stupid! with David Pepper (part 1)

State legislatures, often ignored, play a significant role in deciding our rights, including the right to vote.

November 5, 2022

New Show Launches! with Gardina and Winick

Constitutional Rights Should Never Be Taken For Granted