Also known as: midlevel review · mid level review · intermediate scrutiny
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A standard of judicial review requiring that a classification or regulation be substantially related to an important governmental objective. The government bears the burden of proof and must supply an exceedingly persuasive justification that is genuine rather than hypothesized.
Meredith Maxwell and her husband jointly own their marital home. A state statute designates the husband as head of household and permits him to sell the property without her consent. Meredith challenges the statute after her husband sells the home. The court applies mid-level review and invalidates the statute because the gender classification rests on outdated stereotypes rather than an important objective substantially advanced by the means.
Metro Bank operates a cable system and objects to federal must-carry rules requiring carriage of local broadcast stations. The rules displace some of the bank's preferred programming. The court subjects the content-neutral mandate to mid-level review and upholds it after finding that the rules advance important interests in preserving broadcast access without burdening substantially more speech than necessary.
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Megan Moore seeks admission to a state-supported military college that excludes women. The state defends the policy by citing tradition and the value of single-sex education for men. The court applies mid-level review and strikes down the exclusion because the state fails to provide an exceedingly persuasive justification substantially related to an important objective.
Mariam Mansour brings a paternity action on behalf of her nonmarital child more than six years after birth. State law bars such suits after six years while allowing marital children to seek support indefinitely. The court applies mid-level review and invalidates the limitation because it is not substantially related to the state's interest in preventing stale claims.
Musa Mensah owns copyrights in early twentieth-century musical works and challenges a federal statute extending copyright terms. The extension applies uniformly without regard to gender or legitimacy. The court reviews the law under rational basis rather than mid-level review because no suspect or quasi-suspect classification is involved.
Ming Ma seeks to register a trademark containing a disparaging term. The Patent and Trademark Office denies registration under a content-based statutory bar. The court applies strict scrutiny rather than mid-level review because the denial targets speech on the basis of viewpoint rather than a gender or legitimacy classification.
Mid-level review requires that the classification be substantially related to an important governmental objective. The government must supply an exceedingly persuasive justification that is genuine and may not rely on overbroad generalizations.
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Gender classifications and classifications based on illegitimacy receive mid-level review. The classification must be substantially related to an important governmental objective.
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Mid-level review demands an important objective and substantial relationship while strict scrutiny requires a compelling interest and narrow tailoring. Mid-level review applies to gender and illegitimacy rather than race or fundamental rights.
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A gender classification survives only when the government proves an exceedingly persuasive justification that is substantially related to a genuine important objective. Stereotypes about marital roles or physical capacities ordinarily fail this test.
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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…