Treating unequal circumstances identically can produce deeply unequal results.

A single standard applied to different starting points multiplies the differences instead of correcting them. The same deadline, the same fee, the same expectation of availability lands lightly on one person and crushingly on another, and the rule looks perfectly neutral throughout. Uniform inputs are not neutral when the situations receiving them are not.

When you set a rule for a group, ask who it will be hardest on and whether that difficulty has anything to do with what you are actually trying to achieve. If it does not, build in the flexibility now rather than handling exceptions later, which tends to reward whoever is most comfortable asking.