Which is an element of standing in constitutional law?

• A. Injury
• B. Mootness
• C. Ripe
• D. Advisory opinions

Answer: (A)

The key idea being tested is that standing requires an injury in fact. An injury in fact means the plaintiff has suffered a concrete, particularized harm to a legally protected interest that is actual or imminent. That injury gives the plaintiff a real stake in the outcome and is something a court can redress. Without that real harm, there’s no case or controversy, so the court lacks jurisdiction.

Among the options, injury is the element that actually triggers standing. The other terms point to different doctrines: mootness asks whether events have removed the live controversy, ripeness concerns whether the dispute is premature for adjudication, and advisory opinions concern the court’s authority to render opinions in the absence of a real case or controversy.