Also known as: close examination · exacting examination · strict scrutiny · heightened scrutiny
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A rigorous standard of judicial review applied to laws that burden fundamental rights or employ suspect classifications. The government must prove that the challenged measure is necessary to serve a compelling interest and is narrowly tailored to achieve that interest.
Corinne Cho, a Santeria priestess, challenged a city ban on animal sacrifice that singled out her religion's practices. The court subjected the ordinance to close and exacting examination because it was not neutral or generally applicable. The city could not show the ban was necessary to any compelling interest in public health, so the law fell.
Cassandra Cooper, a non-minority contractor, sued after the city awarded set-asides only to minority firms without evidence of past discrimination in the local industry. The court applied close and exacting examination because the program used racial classifications. General assertions of societal discrimination proved insufficient, and the set-asides were invalidated.
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Claire Campbell, who ran a religious foster agency, refused to certify same-sex couples under a city rule that allowed officials to grant individualized exemptions. The court subjected the policy to close and exacting examination because the discretionary exemptions made it not generally applicable. The city failed to satisfy strict scrutiny and could not enforce the rule against the agency.
Charlotte Chung and her husband sought contraceptives from a state clinic but were turned away under a statute criminalizing their use by married persons. The court gave the law close and exacting examination because it invaded the fundamental right of marital privacy. The state could not justify the ban as necessary to any compelling interest, so the statute was struck down.
Continental Bank wished to spend corporate funds on a ballot initiative opposing a state income tax. The court subjected the spending ban to close and exacting examination because it restricted core political speech. The state could not demonstrate that the prohibition was narrowly tailored to a compelling interest in preventing corruption.
Cade Carpenter, a voter in a newly drawn district, challenged the legislature's map that connected distant minority neighborhoods while splitting rural counties. The court applied close and exacting examination because race appeared to be the predominant factor subordinating traditional districting criteria. Maximizing majority-minority districts was not a compelling interest, and the plan failed.
Close and exacting examination applies when a law burdens a fundamental right such as voting or marital privacy or employs a suspect classification such as race. The government then bears the burden of proving the measure is necessary to a compelling interest and narrowly tailored.
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Close and exacting examination demands that the law be necessary to a compelling interest and narrowly tailored, the highest level of scrutiny. Intermediate scrutiny requires only an important interest and substantial relation, a less demanding standard used for gender classifications.
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The government must identify a compelling interest and demonstrate that the challenged law is the least restrictive means of achieving it. General assertions of societal problems or administrative convenience do not suffice.
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…law restricting marriage to opposite-sex couples constituted a classification on the basis of sex and was therefore subject to strict scrutiny under the Hawaii Constitution. Baehr v. Lewin , 74 Haw. 530, 852 P. 2d 44. Although this decision did not mandate that same-sex marriage be allowed, some States were concerned by its…