ABSTRACT
The Supreme Court policy of according almost total deference to federal and state legislatures in economic controversies has led to laws giving virtual monopoly status to favored businesses. As a result, many people in this country are denied the freedom to pursue an occupation, trade, or profession, and have sought judicial relief to vindicate their liberties. Despite the unfavorable position of the US Supreme Court on this issue, lower courts have been persuaded that the due process or equal protections clauses protect people of their basic right to earn a living and that legislative will or malice is not reason for denial of such a fundamental right in a just society. Plaintiffs operated two independent casket stores without a license as required under the Tennessee Funeral Directors and Embalmers Act (FDEA). The FDEA as applied to plaintiffs did not withstand rational basis review and thus was unconstitutional under the equal protection and due process clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment.
