Also known as: midlevel scrutiny · mid level scrutiny · intermediate scrutiny
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A standard of judicial review lying between rational-basis review and strict scrutiny. The government must show that a classification is substantially related to an important governmental objective.
Mustafa Mahmoud and his wife Mariam Mansour jointly own their home. State law allows only the husband to sell the property without spousal consent. Mariam challenges the statute after Mustafa sells the home. The court applies mid-level scrutiny and invalidates the law because the gender classification is not substantially related to any important state interest.
Millennium Media operates a cable system. A federal rule requires carriage of local broadcast channels on its network. Millennium claims the rule burdens its speech. The court subjects the content-neutral mandate to mid-level scrutiny and upholds it after finding the rule advances important interests without burdening substantially more speech than necessary.
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The Virginia Military Institute admits only men. A female applicant challenges the exclusion. The state defends the policy as preserving tradition. The court applies mid-level scrutiny and requires the state to prove an exceedingly persuasive justification substantially related to an important objective.
Musa Mensah's nonmarital son seeks support after the statutory deadline. The state law imposes a six-year limit only on nonmarital children. The son challenges the distinction. The court applies mid-level scrutiny to the illegitimacy classification and strikes the deadline because it is not substantially related to preventing stale claims.
Oklahoma law sets the minimum drinking age at 21 for men but only 18 for women. A male plaintiff challenges the statute after being denied service. The court applies mid-level scrutiny and invalidates the classification because it is not substantially related to the important objective of traffic safety.
The Citadel maintains an all-male admissions policy justified by tradition and diversity. A qualified female applicant is denied admission and sues. The court applies mid-level scrutiny and holds that the state failed to show an exceedingly persuasive justification substantially related to an important objective.
Mid-level scrutiny requires the government to prove that the classification is substantially related to an important governmental objective. The justification must be genuine and may not rest on overbroad generalizations.
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Mid-level scrutiny demands a substantial relationship to an important interest rather than narrow tailoring to a compelling interest. It applies to quasi-suspect classes such as gender and legitimacy.
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Yes. Content-neutral rules such as must-carry provisions receive mid-level scrutiny requiring the government to show advancement of important interests unrelated to speech suppression without burdening substantially more speech than necessary.
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The government must demonstrate that the classification serves an important objective and that the means are substantially related to that objective. Overbroad generalizations or hypothesized interests are insufficient.
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Yes. Laws distinguishing between marital and nonmarital children must be substantially related to an important governmental objective such as preventing fraudulent claims.
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…holding attempted by RFRA. Even assuming RFRA would be interpreted in effect to mandate some lesser test, say, one equivalent to intermediate scrutiny, the statute nevertheless would require searching judicial scrutiny of state law with the attendant likelihood of invalidation. This is a considerable congressional intrusion into the…