ConLaw 7

  1. What tells you that Equal Protection is an issue?
    • When the government draws distinctions between people—i.e., treats classes of people differently. Examples include: |
    •  • Race and national origin
    •  • Gender
    •  • Alienage (citizens, non-citizens, documented, undocumented)
    •  • Non-marital (illegitimate) children
  2. Distinguish EQUAL PROTECTION from PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES
    • 1) EQUAL PROTECTION
    •   • deals with suspect and quasi-suspect classifications
    •   • e.g., race or national origin, gender, alienage, illegitimacy) |
    • 2) PRIVILEGES & IMMUNITIES
    •   • deals with a state discriminating against NON-RESIDENTS
  3. What are the 3-steps to analyzing an Equal Protection question?
    • 1) What is the CLASSIFICATION?
    • 2) What LEVEL OF SCRUTINY applies?
    • 3) Does the law SATISFY the level of scrutiny?
  4. What classifications are most frequently encountered in an Equal Protection problem?
    • • Race and national origin
    • • Gender
    • • Alienage
    • • Non-marital children
    • • Age
    • • Disability
    • • Wealth
    • • Sexual orientation
  5. When the government discriminates against people on the basis of race or national origin, what level of scrutiny applies?
    Strict scrutiny
  6. How do you know whether discrimination is occurring on the basis of race or national origin? (2 possibilities)
    • 1) the classification exists on the face of the law (law is facially discriminatory)
    • 2) the law is both discriminatory in purpose AND impact (if law is facially neutral)
  7. Does the discriminatory use of peremptory challenges (removal of potential jurors) based on race or national origin violate equal protection?
    YES. Can't use peremptory challenges based on race or national origin without good cause for doing so
  8. When the government discriminates in favor of persons because of race or national origin, what level of scrutiny applies?
    Strict scrutiny still applies
  9. In order for a numerical set-aside in favor of a racial minority to be valid, what must be shown?
    Clear proof of past discrimination
  10. When may educational institutions use race or national origin in admissions decisions to benefit members of that class?
    • • When race/national origin is one factor out of many
    • • When race/national origin is NOT the sole basis for adding points to an admissions score
  11. Can a public school use race as a factor in assigning students to schools?
    NO, not unless strict scrutiny is met
  12. What level of scrutiny must gender-based discrimination satisfy?
    • Intermediate Scrutiny:
    • This means that discrimination based on gender can be allowed only if there is exceeding persuasive justification for the discrimination
  13. Does the discriminatory use of peremptory challenges (removal of potential jurors) based on gender violate equal protection?
    YES. Can't use peremptory challenges based on gender without good cause for doing so
  14. How do you prove that the government is discriminating based on gender? (2 possibilities)
    • • The law is facially discriminatory; or
    • • The law is facially neutral, but is discriminatory in impact and purpose
  15. When the government discriminates in favor of a person because of her gender, what level of scrutiny applies?
    • Intermediate Scrutiny
    • This means that the discrimination, albeit favorable, will be unlawful unless it can be shown that there is an exceeding persuasive justification for the classification. Examples—|
    • a) Gender classifications benefitting women that are based on role stereotypes are unconstitutional
    • b) BUT gender classifications benefiting women that are designed to remedy past discrimination or differences in opportunity are constitutional
  16. When the government discriminates against a non-citizen, what level of scrutiny must be met?
    • Generally, strict scrutiny applies. Exceptions:|
    • • Self-govt or democratic process: e.g., voting, serving on a jury, being a police officer, teacher, or probation officer—rational basis applies
    • • Congress discriminates against aliens—rational basis applies
    • • Discrimination against undocumented aliens—intermediate scrutiny applies (exceeding persuasive justification)
  17. When a law denies benefits to all illegitimate children, but grants those benefits to all marital children, what level of scrutiny applies?
    Intermediate scrutiny (exceeding persuasive justification). E.g., different intestate inheritance rights for marital children versus illegitimate children
  18. Strict scrutiny must be satisfied when there is discrimination involving what classifications?
    • • Race
    • • National origin
    • • Alienage (except for self-govt, democratic process, congressional discrimination)
  19. Intermediate scrutiny must be satisfied when there is discrimination against what classifications?
    • • Gender
    • • Non-marital children
    • • Undocumented alien children (maybe)
  20. To what classes of discrimination does Rational Basis Review apply?
    • • Age
    • • Disability
    • • Wealth or poverty
    • • Government economic regulations
    • • Sexual orientation
    • • Alienage—related to self-govt, democratic process, congressional discrimination
Author
twiggy924
ID
292061
Card Set
ConLaw 7
Description
Equal Protection
Updated