Pre-enforcement challenge

Definition

A lawsuit filed to challenge a law before it is actually applied to the plaintiff. In the standing context, courts allow such challenges when there is a credible or non-imaginary threat that the law will be enforced against the challenger, without requiring proof of certain harm.

Examples

• •Bost's challenge to the ballot receipt deadline filed before the election, rather than waiting to see if late-arriving ballots actually affect his race

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