Fitzpatrick v. Bitzer
| Fitzpatrick v. Bitzer | |
|---|---|
 BNA) 1040 | |
| Case history | |
| Prior | Certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit |
| Holding | |
| The Fourteenth Amendment gives Congress the power to override a State's Eleventh Amendment sovereign immunity for the purpose of enforcing civil rights on the States. | |
| Court membership | |
| |
| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Rehnquist, joined by Burger, Stewart, White, Marshall, Blackmun, Powell |
| Concurrence | Brennan (in judgment) |
| Concurrence | Stevens (in judgment) |
| Laws applied | |
| U.S. Const. amends. XI, XIV | |
Fitzpatrick v. Bitzer, 427 U.S. 445 (1976), was a United States Supreme Court decision that determined that the U.S. Congress has the power to abrogate the Eleventh Amendment sovereign immunity of the states, if this is done pursuant to its Fourteenth Amendment power to enforce upon the states the guarantees of the Fourteenth Amendment.[1]
Background
In 1972, Congress amended
Issue
Can Congress abrogate state sovereign immunity under Section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment?
Decision
The Court, in an opinion by Justice William Rehnquist, distinguished previous cases in which attempts by individuals to sue the states for money damages (or the equivalent), including Edelman v. Jordan, had failed because the plaintiffs had not identified an express provision by Congress that permitted such lawsuits. The Court ruled that Congress has the power, under the Fourteenth Amendment, to abrogate sovereign immunity of states, as it was enacted specifically to limit the power of the states with the purpose of enforcing civil rights guarantees against them.
See also
External links
- ^ Text of Fitzpatrick v. Bitzer, 427 U.S. 445 (1976) is available from: CourtListener Findlaw Google Scholar Justia Library of Congress