An Equal Protection Analysis of the Classifications in Initiative 300: The Family Farm Amendment to the Constitution of the State of Nebraska

Authors

Patricia Pansing Brooks, University of Nebraska College of LawFollow

Abstract

I. Introduction

II. The History of Corporate Farming Legislation in Nebraska

III. The Equal Protection Theories of the United States Supreme Court ... A. The Three Tiers of Scrutiny ... B. Minimal Scrutiny—The Rational Relationship Test ... 1. U.S. Railroad Retirement Board v. Fritz ... 2. Minnesota v. Clover Leaf Creamery Co. ... 3. Schweiker v. Wilson ... 4. Logan v. Zimmerman Brush Co.

IV. Application of the Court's Equal Protection Analysis to Initiative 300 ... A. The Search for an Articulated Purpose ... 1. The Initiative Petition, Amendment, and Ballot Summary ... 2. Legislative Hearings ... 3. Campaign Literature ... B. The Search for a Rational Relationship ... 1. The Nature of the Classifications ... a. The Distinctions between Related and Unrelated Individuals ... b. Corporate Kin: Love to the Fourth Degree … c. Some Preferred Businesses ... 2. Application of the Classifications to the State's Purposes ... a. Protection of the Family Farm from Competition from Large, Absentee Corporations ... b. Preservation of Rural Life ... c. Corporate Stewardship of the Land

V. Conclusion

Recommended Citation

Patricia Pansing Brooks, An Equal Protection Analysis of the Classifications in Initiative 300: The Family Farm Amendment to the Constitution of the State of Nebraska, 62 Neb. L. Rev. (1983)
Available at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/nlr/vol62/iss4/5