I have posted (too?) many times over the years on DeShaney substantive due process affirmative duty cases, emphasizing all the while that the threshold issue in such cases is whether there is an affirmative substantive due process duty to begin
Chicago-Kent College of Law
Chicago-Kent College of Law is a law school that offers a range of academic programs including J.D., LL.M., joint degrees, and non-degree certifications. It emphasizes practical legal training through clinics, externships, and trial advocacy programs, preparing students for real-world legal practice. The school is recognized for its programs in Intellectual Property Law and Labor and Employment Law. It also supports international students through its Office of International Programs. Chicago-Kent publishes legal scholarship and commentary on topics such as civil rights litigation, constitutional law, and legal practice developments, reflecting its academic and practical focus.
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Latest from Chicago-Kent College of Law - Page 7
A Unique High-Speed Police Pursuit Case: The Plaintiff Might Win Against The Officer And City
High-speed police pursuit cases often end in serious bodily harm or death not only to the person pursued but to innocent bystanders as well. In most such cases the Fourth Amendment’s excessive force/reasonableness standard does not apply because there is…
The Second Circuit Rules That Contracts Clause Violations Are Actionable Under Section 1983
The Contracts Clause The Contracts Clause, U.S. Const. Art I, § 10, provides: “No State shall … pass any … Law Impairing the Obligation of Contracts.” The Supreme Court has developed a three-part Contracts Clause test: (1) does the state law…
Bill of Attainder Violations and Section 1983
By its terms, section 1983 creates damages and prospective relief remedies for deprivations by state and local government officials, and by local governments themselves, of rights, privileges and immunities secured by the Constitution and laws. But what constitutional violations are…
Three Scholars Discuss Government Funding and Church-State Separation after Carson (Video)
The Decalogue Society of Chicago invited Professors Nicole Garnett of Notre Dame Law School, Michael Helfand of Pepperdine Law School and me to speak about government funding and church-state separation in light of the Supreme Court’s June 2022 decision in…
Off-Duty Police and State Action/Color of Law
Police officers when on the job and exercising government power are state actors subject to the Fourteenth Amendment and incorporated constitutional provisions, including the Fourth Amendment. (I discuss extensively the various state action tests and Supreme Court and circuit decisions…
Additions to List of 2021 Term Section 1983-Related Supreme Court Decisions
After I posted earlier, I realized that I had inadvertently omitted two per curiam excessive force decisions from the 2021 Term in which the Supreme Court ruled in favor of granting qualified immunity to law enforcement officers. So below is…
A Short List of 2021 Term Section 1983-Related Supreme Court Decisions
Some of you may be interested in a short list of recent Supreme Court section 1983-related decisions. Here are decisions from the Court’s 2021 Term, together with the current two cert-granted cases for the 2022 Term. I hope you find…
Miranda Violations and Section 1983: The Disingenuous Decision in Vega v. Tekoh
In Chavez v. Martinez, 538 U.S. 760 (2003), a majority of the Supreme Court effectively held that coerced confessions that violate the Fifth Amendment are actionable under section 1983 so long as the confessions are used at criminal trials. See…
The Religion Clauses, RFRA & RLUIPA: My New Video
At Chicago-Kent’s 38th Annual Conference on Section 1983, which took place as a streaming webinar on April 20-21, 2022, I presented an update on the Establishment Clause, the Free Exercise Clause, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) and the Religious…