Who You Cannot Sue Under § 1983
Judges, prosecutors, witnesses, legislators, and other officials may have absolute immunity under Section 1983. Learn who is off-limits before you file.
A project of the Institute for Police Conduct, Inc.
Your free guide to holding
police accountable in federal court.
When police violate your constitutional rights, federal law gives you the right to sue. This site explains how — in plain language, with real cases, for people representing themselves.
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What Is On The Site Right Now
These numbers show what is live on the public site right now: articles to train you, case summaries to show how courts rule, terms and concepts entries to translate legal language, and process guides to walk you through a federal case step by step. The total page count below also includes the home page and the main section pages.
248
Case Summaries
123
Terms and Concepts
13
Process Guides
31
Articles
428 published pages · 38 courts cited · about 25 hours of reading · free to use
Articles
Read the articles in order from oldest to newest.
Section 1983 Is Getting Harder to Win
The Civil Rights Act of 1871 created a broad remedy. Later courts added court-created barriers that are not written into the statute but now make many Section 1983 cases harder to bring, survive, and win.
getting-started history qualified-immunity pleading
How Courts Cut Back Section 1983 with Court-Made Rules
Section 1983 says people who violate constitutional rights shall be liable. Courts later added major barriers not written in the statute. This article explains what that means and why it matters.
history court-made-rules qualified-immunity absolute-immunity
Heck: When a Section 1983 Claim Is Barred
Learn when Heck v. Humphrey blocks a Section 1983 damages claim, how pleas and diversion programs affect the analysis, and what facts you need to evaluate the issue.
heck getting-started criminal-case damages
Why No Lawyer Will Take Your § 1983 Case
Civil rights lawyers reject most Section 1983 cases for economic reasons, qualified immunity risk, and low expected damages. Here is what that means for your options.
getting-started reality-check attorney-fees economics
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