Who I Am
 
I was previously the legal affairs columnist for Politico and New York Magazine, and I’ve written for pretty much every major media outlet in the country — including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, The New York Review of Books, The Atlantic, TIME, USA Today, WIRED, Slate, The New Republic, The American Prospect, and the Columbia Journalism Review.
I also regularly provide legal commentary for television and radio, including MS NOW, CNN, NPR, and the BBC.
You can check out my personal website for more about me, all of my past writing, and links to appearances.
What This Is
 
Open File is an extension of my interests and work, anchored by the same rigor and perspective as my columns at Politico and New York Magazine.
As always, I’ll focus on the Justice Department, the courts (including the Supreme Court), and the intersection of law and politics.
There’s more happening in these areas than any one outlet can cover well, and I wanted a place to do it on my own terms and in a more accessible way for readers. I’ll continue writing for and appearing on other media outlets, but I also want to use what I’ve learned in the industry — writing for many different places over the years — about what is distinctive and useful in our current, tumultuous political moment.
“Open File” is a legal term of art that describes the practice of prosecutors sharing their entire investigative file with the defense as part of discovery. This almost never actually happens, but it’s an evocative way to describe transparency and fact-finding in the law and in media. (Also, a bunch of other good names were already taken.)
What to Expect
 
I’m not going to bombard you with daily emails. You’ll get an edition once or twice a week — maybe more when there’s a big news week.
You’ll sometimes get the full text of a “column,” but as you may already know, I have a very expansive view of what that means. It might be a reported column, commentary, a deep case analysis, an interview, a roundtable, or even a debate.
In between, I’ll provide shorter reviews and commentary on what matters in national legal affairs, perhaps with some lighter items on occasion as well.
Feel free to email me with any thoughts on what you’d like to see.
What You Need to Do
 
Simply subscribe, and the newsletter will hit your inbox. And please share this with anyone you think might be interested!
— Ankush

Keep Reading

© 2026 Open File.
beehiivPowered by beehiiv