Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. v. Ward

Alabama taxed out-of-state insurance companies at a higher rate than Alabama-based insurers. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. and other out-of-state insurers (plaintiffs) sued, arguing the law violated the Equal Protection Clause. The trial court upheld the law as rationally related to two legitimate purposes: encouraging new insurance companies to form in Alabama, and encouraging out-of-state insurers to invest in Alabama assets and securities. The plaintiffs appealed, challenging whether those purposes were actually legitimate.