Join Maude and Claude on the Study for the Bar in Your Car podcast for a vital episode on Constitutional Law – Levels of Scrutiny! This episode is your essential roadmap to understanding how courts evaluate government actions that impact your rights.

Learn the three main tiers of judicial review and how they dictate the scrutiny applied to challenged laws:

• Rational Basis Review (or Minimal Scrutiny): The easiest test for the government to pass. A law is presumed constitutional and upheld if it's rationally related to any conceivable legitimate government interest. The burden is on the challenger to prove otherwise. This applies to most economic and social welfare regulations, as well as classifications based on age, wealth, or disability. Crucially, abortion regulations now fall under this standard post-Dobbs.
• Intermediate Scrutiny: A tougher standard requiring the government to show the law is substantially related to an important government interest. The burden shifts more to the government. This level applies primarily to classifications based on gender (as seen in Craig v. Borne) and illegitimacy, and also to content-neutral speech regulations.
• Strict Scrutiny (or Maximum Scrutiny): The most demanding test. The law is presumed unconstitutional, and the government must prove it is necessary to achieve a compelling government interest and is the least restrictive means. This applies to laws affecting fundamental rights (like the right to marry, free speech, or freedom of association) and suspect classifications (such as race, national origin, and most alienage classifications). Laws under strict scrutiny rarely survive.

Understanding these levels of scrutiny is fundamental for effective bar prep. Tune in and boost your constitutional law expertise!