Equality before the law refers to the idea that an individual's identity, status, and origins are irrelevant in matters of justice and public life: "the law treats individuals abstractly, whether as plaintiffs seeking redress or as defendants accused of criminal behavior" (Calhoun 2002). Equality of opportunity refers to the idea that all economic participants have the same chance to occupy various positions in society: "in principle, position is accorded by talent and effort rather than by inherited social status or wealth" (Calhoun 2002). Equality of results refers to the equal distribution of goods within society: "long the ideal, if not the practice, of communist societies" (Calhoun 2002). The first two are usually viewed as basic to democracy and liberal economies, however there is more disagreement over the role of the third (Calhoun 2002). .

             Economic stratification by a combination of class, race, gender, region, religion, and ethnicity is still a central feature of the majority of societies and a strong determinant of life outcomes (Calhoun 2002). Although all societies accept some inequality, "they differ in the type and degree that are considered appropriate," and differ in the "degree to which they accept inheritance as the basis for inequality," thus inherited inequality has been discouraged in modern societies "in favor of an emphasis on merit-based rewards" (Calhoun 2002). .

             Much research has been conducted concerning the mechanisms that produce patterns of wealth and poverty over time, "especially those that inhibit social mobility in spite of social policies designed to create access to wealth," especially public education (Calhoun 2002). In this context, equity refers to the "fair distribution of opportunities and rewards" (Calhoun 2002).

             The emergence of discourses of positive difference on the part of numerous minority groups, particularly in the United States, has moved the "terrain" of equality from the older concept of equal treatment to new models of cultural equality and re-distributive justice (Calhoun 2002).