Also known as: arbitrarily · arbitrariness
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An adjective describing governmental or judicial action that rests on individual discretion or preference rather than fixed rules or reasoned analysis. In constitutional and property contexts the term identifies restrictions or decisions lacking a substantial relation to public health, safety, or welfare and therefore vulnerable to invalidation under due process or equal protection principles.
Ariana Azizi purchased a corner parcel zoned for commercial use. The city later redrew the zoning map so that only her lot fell into a newly created residential district while every surrounding parcel remained commercial. Because the reclassification bore no relation to traffic, health, or safety concerns and left Azizi unable to develop the land for its highest-value use, the restriction operated arbitrarily.
Amelia Amari owned one acre inside a large agricultural zone. After she petitioned the county, the board amended the map to permit a shopping center on her parcel alone while leaving every neighboring farm under agricultural restrictions. The change advanced no community-wide planning goal and functioned as an arbitrary favor to one landowner.
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Aaron Adams faced trial on a felony charge. The court applied a state evidentiary rule that categorically barred any defendant previously convicted of perjury from testifying, even though Adams's proposed testimony directly addressed the charged conduct. The rule operated arbitrarily by preventing Adams from exercising his constitutional right to present a defense.
Alice Atkins owned a single residential lot surrounded by commercial properties. The city council rezoned only her lot to allow a gas station, citing no change in surrounding uses or traffic patterns. The isolated amendment advanced no legitimate public purpose and amounted to arbitrary treatment of one owner.
Antonio Alvarado and his granddaughter sought to share a single-family home. A city ordinance defined family so narrowly that their arrangement was prohibited even though the household created no additional traffic or safety burdens. The restriction intruded on family autonomy without any rational connection to the city's stated goals and therefore operated arbitrarily.
Abigail Alvarez lived with her two grandchildren in a home zoned for single-family occupancy. The ordinance defined family to exclude this arrangement despite the absence of any demonstrated overcrowding or parking problem. The rule lacked a rational relationship to legitimate land-use objectives and therefore constituted an arbitrary intrusion on protected family choices.
A zoning amendment is arbitrary when it singles out one parcel or small area for treatment inconsistent with the surrounding zone and the comprehensive plan without advancing a legitimate public purpose. Courts examine whether the change bears a substantial relation to health, safety, or welfare. Spot zoning that merely favors one owner fails this test.
Government action is arbitrary under due process when it lacks any rational connection to a legitimate objective and therefore deprives a person of property or liberty without sufficient justification. Courts scrutinize whether the restriction is reasonable as applied to the particular facts. Irrational classifications or unexplained differential treatment trigger invalidation.
Supporting sources
Yes. Evidentiary rules that categorically or disproportionately prevent a criminal defendant from presenting a defense violate due process and compulsory process when the restriction lacks a sufficient justification. The rule must not arbitrarily or disproportionately impair the right to testify.
…be sufficient there is an end, if not a peremptory mandamus is awarded. The discretion of a court is a legal discretion, not arbitrary; if the applicant makes out a proper case the court are bound to grant it. Mr. Lee read the affidavit of Hazen Kimball stating that on 3 March 1801 he was a clerk in the Department of…