Constitutional Law
Equal Protection
Definition
The Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment requires that no state shall deny any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. It prohibits the government from making arbitrary classifications that treat similarly situated individuals differently. The level of judicial scrutiny depends on the classification: strict scrutiny for suspect classes (race, national origin) and fundamental rights, intermediate scrutiny for quasi-suspect classes (gender), and rational basis review for all other classifications.
Example
A state law prohibits interracial marriage. This racial classification triggers strict scrutiny and violates the Equal Protection Clause.