This casebook emphasizes important circuit court decisions together with relevant Supreme Court case law. This enables students to see how principles articulated in Supreme Court decisions are implemented by lower courts. Constitutional Torts also addresses affirmative duties, constitutional tort actions in state courts, and attorney's fees. Further, this book is organized around the statutory language of section 1983, thereby driving home the crucial distinction between prima facie cases and constitutional tort immunities and defenses. The Second Edition of Constitutional Torts builds on the original work in a number of important ways:The Second Edition includes both the most recent Supreme Court opinions and extensive coverage of lower court decisions. Studying circuit and district court decisions is crucial to understanding the developing law of § 1983, because (a) they show how general principles of law pronounced by the Supreme Court are actually applied; (b) the Supreme Court rarely visits some important aspects of the doctrine; and (c) in this dynamic area of the law, the lower courts are the first to identify new issues and new ways of approaching old problems.The Second Edition gives expanded coverage of the substantive constitutional claims that provide the basis for most § 1983 claims. For example, the Second Edition includes materials addressing the content of the terms "liberty" and "property" in the Fourteenth Amendment, the First Amendment retaliation claims of government employees, and the Fourth, Fourteenth, and Eighth Amendment claims of persons alleging they were victims of excessive force by law enforcement officials. It is especially important to cover these materials in a § 1983 book, since they are largely ignored in standard constitutional law casebooks.At the same time, the materials continue to emphasize the "tort" aspects of § 1983 litigation, especially with regard to affirmative duties, causation, official immunity, and damages. These materials illuminate both the similarities and differences between constitutional torts and analogous principles developed in the common law tort setting. By studying both tort and constitutional principles, students learn how to argue for and against the application of common law tort principles to constitutional tort issues, and will come to understand both the theoretical and practical consequences of the constitutional underpinnings of the litigation.The Second Edition offers exceptionally comprehensive coverage of remedial issues. It provides a thorough treatment of compensatory damages, punitive damages, injunctive relief, and attorneys' fees. These materials not only explain the basic doctrine, but explore their strategic implications on the conduct of litigation.

Constitutional Torts

Nahmod, Sheldon H.

Wells, Michael L.

Eaton, Thomas A.

Constitutional Law

Anderson Pub. Co.

<p>Nahmod, Sheldon H., Wells, Michael L., Eaton, Thomas A.</p>

Lexis Nexis/Matthew Bender

<p>The distinctive feature of this Federal Courts casebook, and the main difference between it and other Federal Courts books, is its systematic focus on remedial issues, especially the problems that arise when a litigant tries to enforce federal constitutional rights against state or federal governments and officers in the federal courts. Departing from the traditional approach of Federal Courts books, we begin with a chapter on section 1983 litigation. The book stresses economy of means, clarity of presentation, and attention to the real-world Federal Courts issues that students need to understand and anticipate. This edition covers the major cases decided by the Supreme Court over the past four years, either as principal cases or in the notes. The new Supreme Court decisions include Connick v. Thompson and Lane v. Franks (chapter 1), Minneci v. Pollard (chapter 2), Gunn v. Minton and Mims v. Arrow Financial Services (chapter 3), Already LLC v. Nike, Inc., Camreta v. Greene, Chafin v. Chafin, Hollingsworth v. Perry, United States v. Windsor, and Zivotofsky v. Clinton (chapter 4), Sossamon v. Texas and VOPA v. Stewart (chapter 5), Smith v. Bayer, Sprint Communications v. Jacobs, and Susan B. Anthony List v. Driehaus (chapter 6), White v. Woodall and McQuiggin v. Perkins (chapter 9), and Stern v. Marshall (chapter 10). We have extensively revised chapter 4 (standing and justiciability) and chapter 9 (habeas corpus).</p>

Cases and Materials on Federal Courts, 3d (American Casebook Series)

Nichol, Gene R.

Marshall, William P.

Rules & Procedures

West Academic Publishing

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