Karen's Corner—February 2024

Getting in just under the wire—thanks, leap year! Plus, our annual Disneyland trip and an interview with the incredible Katy Robinette

For those readers who are relatively new to “One First,” welcome to Karen’s Corner—a once-monthly bonus issue of “One First” from Steve’s better half. Consider this less of a nerdy Supreme Court review, and more like the One First After Dark, where we get real about all things in the legal profession, parenthood, and life more generally. If you’re looking for reaction to the Supreme Court’s decision yesterday to take up former President Trump’s claim that he is immune from criminal prosecution for his alleged role in January 6, you won’t find it here. (Instead of doing the dishes, Steve hosted a thread on this very topic last night.)

We’ve had LOTS of new subscribers lately (thank you!), so I want to take a minute to introduce myself (more on that below). I am Karen Vladeck—Steve’s wife and the co-founder of this newsletter. One First is something we came up with one night sitting at our dining table because we wanted to have a long-format way to communicate with people who wanted to learn more about the Court (and also to have some fun along the way). Somehow, we’ve picked up more than 27,000 subscribers in the first year-plus, and we’re excited to see what’s in store for the rest of 2024 (even if we have some … trepidation about what’s in store for the rest of 2024).

Although the content of “One First” focuses almost exclusively on the Supreme Court and related topics (including every Monday issue and most of the Thursday bonus issues), we wanted to have at least some regular (i.e., once-a-month) content for paid subscribers that focuses a little bit more on our lives. If you’re already a paid subscriber: thank you! And if not, now’s a good time to consider signing up for something that we hope will bring you a mix of education and enjoyment.

Steve will be back Monday with the free, boring stuff (as I’m writing this, he’s debating between current events and some random historical piece). But if you’d like to hear about our trip to Disneyland (including tips and tricks for mastering Genie+), an interview with the amazing Katy Robinette, and some of my recent picks for books and shopping, then keep on reading!