Civil Rights Law

This course studies the statutory, constitutional and common law issues arising out of (non-criminal) civil rights enforcement. It covers the major civil rights laws emerging from Reconstruction, including the still-predominant method of civil rights enforcement against states and municipalities, Section 1983; parallel doctrine regarding suits against federal officials (Bivens); more recent statutory enactments such as the Voting Rights Act and Americans with Disabilities Act; as well as novel tools such as the Administrative Procedure Act and Federal Tort Claims Act to challenge executive actions such as changing the census and reversing DACA, over the past two years. The course will not do more than touch on employment discrimination under Title VII, as that is covered in other courses. And, just as we will study mechanisms to remediate police and prison misconduct and to promote equality, we will study technical doctrines relating to defendant's immunities and defenses and the limited remedial capacities of the courts which, in turn, surfaces deeper constitutional tensions at the heart of our system of government. The course will be useful for those interested in civil rights practice, those working for state governments and municipalities, those with a general interest in civil rights conversations and doctrine, and future law clerks. In addition to primary instruction, we will hear from several the preeminent civil rights practitioners in the areas of policing, prisoners' rights and discrimination. Class grade will be based on an in-class final exam.