Also known as: militates · militated · militating · militare · weigh against · tell against
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
To exert influence or weight in favor of or against a particular outcome or decision.
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Police officers enter Michael Miller's home without a warrant after a neighbor reports a loud argument over a parking space. The government later argues that the need to prevent evidence destruction justified the entry. The minor nature of the underlying offense militates against finding sufficient exigency to overcome the presumption of unreasonableness.
Parklane Hosiery faces a private damages suit after an SEC judgment. The plaintiff seeks to use offensive collateral estoppel on the violation issue. The strong federal policy favoring jury trials militates against applying estoppel where the defendant lacked a jury in the first proceeding.
A grand jury subpoenas a reporter's notes about confidential sources in a criminal investigation. The reporter moves to quash the subpoena on First Amendment grounds. The requirement of narrow tailoring to avoid chilling protected activity militates against enforcement of the subpoena.
Congress enacts a statute creating a federal civil remedy for gender-motivated violence. A defendant challenges the law as exceeding Commerce Clause authority. The noneconomic character of the regulated conduct militates against upholding the statute under the commerce power.
The coastal commission conditions a building permit on the owners granting a public easement across their beachfront lot. The owners challenge the condition as an unconstitutional taking. The lack of a nexus between the permit condition and the stated regulatory purpose militates against upholding the requirement.
A union sues an employer in federal court for breach of a collective bargaining agreement. The employer argues that state contract law should govern the dispute. The need for uniform interpretation of labor agreements militates against applying varying state rules.
Militate means to exert influence or weight for or against an outcome. Mitigate means to lessen the severity of something. The two terms are not interchangeable despite occasional confusion in drafting.
It means those factors weigh against granting injunctive relief. In nuisance cases, for example, harm to third parties or employees can militate against an injunction even if the plaintiff shows a trespass or nuisance.
Yes. Employee interests can militate against an injunction that would cause job losses but can militate in favor of an injunction that improves working conditions by reducing noise or hazards.
…prohibition not only does not justify the imposition of unrelated conditions for eliminating the prohibition, but positively militates against the practice. [^maj-6]: As JUSTICE BRENNAN notes, the Commission also argued that the construction of the new house would " increase private use immediately adjacent to public…