Constitutional and Administrative Law Terms

This section covers the language readers see when courts review government power, agencies issue or enforce rules, and constitutional rights shape public-law disputes.

Current cornerstone topics include due process, equal protection, First Amendment, Fourth Amendment, judicial review, rulemaking, administrative law judge, and separation of powers.

For adjacent concepts about courts, precedent, and jurisdiction, start with Jurisdiction, Precedent, Appeal, and Remedy.

In this section

• Administrative Law Judge in Agency Proceedings
  An administrative law judge is an official who presides over hearings in many agency disputes.
• Arbitrary and Capricious Review in Administrative Law
  Learn what arbitrary and capricious review means when courts evaluate agency action in administrative law.
• Due Process Under U.S. Constitutional Law
  Due process is the constitutional principle that government must follow fair procedures and, in some contexts, respect certain fundamental liberties.
• Equal Protection Under the Constitution
  Equal protection is the constitutional principle that government generally must not treat similarly situated people differently without sufficient legal justification.
• Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies Before Judicial Review
  Understand exhaustion of administrative remedies and why courts often require parties to finish agency processes first.
• First Amendment Rights and Restrictions
  The First Amendment protects speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition rights against improper government interference.
• Fourth Amendment Search and Seizure Protections
  The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures by government.
• Intermediate Scrutiny in Constitutional Review
  Learn what intermediate scrutiny means and how it differs from strict scrutiny and rational basis review.
• Judicial Review in Constitutional and Administrative Law
  Judicial review is the power of courts to evaluate whether laws or government actions are valid under higher legal authority.
• Notice and Comment Rulemaking in Administrative Procedure
  Learn how notice and comment rulemaking works and why public participation matters in administrative law.
• Overbreadth in Constitutional Speech Challenges
  Understand overbreadth and why a law can be challenged for sweeping in too much protected speech.
• Prior Restraint Under the First Amendment
  Learn what prior restraint means and why courts usually treat advance limits on speech with strong suspicion.
• Rational Basis Review in Constitutional Cases
  See how rational basis review works and why it is the most deferential standard of constitutional review.
• Rulemaking in Administrative Law
  Rulemaking is the process by which an administrative agency creates, amends, or repeals regulations.
• Separation of Powers in U.S. Government
  Separation of powers is the constitutional principle that divides government authority among branches to prevent concentration of power.
• Strict Scrutiny as a Constitutional Review Standard
  Understand strict scrutiny, when courts apply it, and why it is the toughest standard of constitutional review.
• Substantive Due Process in U.S. Constitutional Law
  Learn what substantive due process means, why it matters, and how it differs from procedural due process in U.S. constitutional law.
• Vagueness in Constitutional and Due Process Analysis
  See what vagueness means in constitutional law and why unclear statutes can violate due process.