Emanuel Law Outlines -- Constitutional Law - the GeocitiesSites伊曼纽尔法律概述——宪法的geocitiessites.docVIP

[Note: Numbers in brackets refer to the printed pages of the Emanuel Law Outline where the topic is discussed.] Emanuel Law OutlinesConstitutional Law Chapter 1INTRODUCTION I. THREE STANDARDS OF REVIEW A. Three standards: There are three key standards of review which reappear constantly throughout Constitutional Law. When a court reviews the constitutionality of government action, it is likely to be choosing from among one of these three standards of review: (1) the mere rationality standard; (2) the strict scrutiny standard; and (3) the middle-level review standard. [2] 1. Mere rationality: Of the three standards, the easiest one to satisfy is the mere rationality standard. When the court applies this mere rationality standard, the court will uphold the governmental action so long as two requirements are met: a. Legitimate state objective: First, the government must be pursuing a legitimate govern mental objective. This is a very broad concept – practically any type of health, safety or general welfare goal will be found to be legitimate. b. Rational relation: Second, there has to be a minimally rational relation between the means chosen by the government and the state objective. This requirement, too, is extremely easy to satisfy: only if the government has acted in a completely arbitrary and irrational way will this rational link between means and end not be found. 2. Strict scrutiny: At the other end of the spectrum, the standard that is hardest to satisfy is the strict scrutiny standard of review. This standard will only be satisfied if the governmental act satisfies two very tough requirements: a. Compelling objective: First, the objective being pursued by the government must be compelling (not just legitimate, as for the mere rationality standard); and b. Necessary means: Second, the means chosen by the government must be necessary to achieve that compelling end. In other words, the fit between the means and the end must be extremely tight. (It’s not enough