## Facts

- Michigan’s constitution bars election or appointment to judicial office after age 70, and a related statute makes a candidate ineligible for circuit judge if, at the time of election, the candidate is 70 or older.
- Michael J. Theile served as a Michigan state-court judge in Genesee County’s Family Division; he was appointed in 2005 and later elected and re-elected.
- The next election for his seat was scheduled for 2020, when he would be 71, making him ineligible to run under the age limit.
- Theile asserted he would seek re-election if the age restriction were not in place.
- He filed a federal suit alleging the age restriction violated the Equal Protection Clause.
- The district court dismissed the complaint under Rule 12(b)(6), and Theile appealed.

## Issues

1. Whether age-based classifications affecting eligibility for state judicial office require intermediate scrutiny under the Equal Protection Clause.
2. Whether Michigan’s prohibition on election or appointment to judicial office after age 70 fails rational-basis review and thus violates equal protection.

## Decision

- The Sixth Circuit affirmed the Rule 12(b)(6) dismissal.
- The court held age is not a suspect or quasi-suspect classification; rational-basis review applies.
- Applying rational-basis review, the court held Michigan’s age-70 judicial limitation is constitutionally permissible because it is rationally related to legitimate state interests.
- The court relied on Supreme Court precedent sustaining mandatory retirement/age limits, including in the context of state judges, and emphasized deference when a state defines qualifications for its judiciary.

## Legal Principles

- Age-based classifications are reviewed under rational-basis scrutiny, not intermediate or strict scrutiny.
- Under rational-basis review, a law is valid if it is rationally related to a legitimate governmental interest; the government need not produce evidence, and the law may rest on rational speculation.
- Legislatures may use bright-line age rules even if overinclusive or underinclusive; equal protection does not require the least restrictive alternative for non-suspect classifications.
- States have broad authority to set qualifications for state judges, and federal courts are especially deferential when reviewing such choices.

## Conclusion

The Sixth Circuit held that Michigan’s age-70 limit on election or appointment to judicial office is subject to rational-basis review and is rationally related to legitimate interests such as maintaining judicial competence, public confidence, and administrable eligibility rules, so the Equal Protection challenge was properly dismissed.


Theile v. Michigan, 891 F.3d 240 (6th Cir. 2018)