"Expert judgment improves when dissent is structured rather than suppressed.
A standard is a commitment you make to your future self. In a policy exception that will become precedent if granted, it exists so you do not have to reinvent judgment every time the room is loud.
In a policy exception that will become precedent if granted, a quiet “just this once” becomes precedent. The damage is not one exception; it is the loss of clarity about the bar and who can change it. Name what you are refusing to optimize, so future changes do not quietly destroy the property you thought you were protecting.
Cass R. Sunstein is useful here because it forces precision. Re-state the standard as a yes/no check and make the exception path explicit and narrow. Make it falsifiable.