Supreme Court Grants City Council Members Absolute Immunity from Section 1983 Liability for Hiring and Firing Decisions in Bogan v. Scott-Harris: An Isolated Decision Or a Change in Immunity Jurisprudence, The
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Authors
McColly, Christina M.
Issue Date
1999
Volume
32
Issue
Type
Journal Article
Language
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
INTRODUCTION|In Tenney v. Brandhove, the United States Supreme Court concluded that Congress did not intend for 42 U.S.C. Section 1983, enacted as part of the Civil Rights Act of 1871, to eradicate legislative immunities that were "well grounded in history and reason." The Supreme Court's decision in Tenney reflected its long-standing practice of recognizing the immunity of public officials for acts done "within the sphere of legislative activity." Before 1871, certain legislative immunities were so well established in the common law that the Tenney court presumed that "Congress would have specifically so provided [in section 1983] had it wished to abolish" them. The privilege of legislators to be free from the fear of civil liability for their official speech and actions was "deemed so essential ... that it was written into the Articles of Confederation and later into the Constitution." The common law tradition of immunity is deeply rooted in the foundations of American legal thought, and has had a pervasive influence on Supreme Court decisions interpreting civil liability under section 1983...
Description
Citation
32 Creighton L. Rev. 1433 (1998-1999)
Publisher
Creighton University School of Law