The Fifth Circuit Lays Economic Protectionism to Rest in St. Joseph Abbey

Abstract

On March 20, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in St. Joseph Abbey v. Castille held that the economic protection of a discrete interest group does not constitute a legitimate state interest under rational basis review. In so holding, the court split from the Tenth Circuit, which held the opposite almost a decade earlier. This Comment argues that courts should follow the Fifth Circuit’s decision and deem economic protectionism an illegitimate state interest. Recognizing economic protectionism as a legitimate state interest, as the Tenth Circuit did, is inconsistent with U.S. Supreme Court precedent.