Also known as: Article III standing · Article 3 standing · Art. III standing · constitutional standing · justiciability
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The constitutional requirements that plaintiffs must meet to invoke the federal judicial power under Article III. These requirements include an injury in fact that is concrete and particularized, fairly traceable to the defendant's conduct, and likely to be redressed by a favorable decision. Generalized grievances shared equally by all citizens fail to satisfy the injury requirement.
Alexis Archer files suit in federal court alleging that federal officials failed to follow statutory procedures in administering a nationwide benefits program. She asserts only an interest in lawful government action and identifies no personal harm distinct from that suffered by the public at large. The court dismisses the action because the asserted interest constitutes a generalized grievance that cannot support standing.
Andrew Avery downloads a mobile application and later learns that it displayed more of his personal identifier than a federal privacy statute permitted. He sues the app developer but alleges no actual misuse of his data, no identity theft, and no other tangible consequence. The court dismisses the complaint because a bare statutory violation without a concrete or particularized injury fails to satisfy the injury-in-fact requirement.
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A plaintiff must demonstrate an injury that is both concrete and particularized rather than abstract or shared equally with the public. A bare statutory violation is insufficient unless it creates a real risk of harm to the plaintiff. Courts examine whether the alleged harm is actual or imminent and distinct to the plaintiff.
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No. Congress cannot confer standing on plaintiffs who lack a concrete and particularized injury in fact. Statutory authorization alone does not dispense with the constitutional requirement of injury in fact. Generalized grievances remain nonjusticiable even when a statute purports to allow citizen enforcement.
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Courts require more than a technical breach of statutory procedure. The violation must expose the plaintiff to a real risk of harm or produce an actual consequence. When a plaintiff alleges only the failure to receive a required disclosure without any resulting tangible effect, the claim is treated as a bare procedural violation that does not confer standing.
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