Sovereign Immunity

Sovereign immunity comes from the English idea that the king could do no wrong and could not be sued in his own courts. American courts adopted it early: the federal government cannot be sued unless Congress consents. When the Supreme Court let a citizen of South Carolina sue Georgia in Chisholm v. Georgia in 1793, the states responded with the Eleventh Amendment, ratified in 1795, and the Court later read it broadly to bar most suits against states by private citizens in federal court.

Congress has waived federal immunity for many claims. The Tucker Act of 1887 allows suits for money owed under contracts and for takings of property, mostly in the Court of Federal Claims. The Federal Tort Claims Act of 1946 allows suits for injuries caused by the negligence of federal employees. A 1976 amendment to the Administrative Procedure Act allows suits seeking to stop or change unlawful agency actions, though not money damages.

State immunity has its own exceptions. Under Ex parte Young in 1908, people can sue state officials to stop ongoing violations of federal law, and cities and counties have no immunity under federal civil rights law. Defenders say sovereign immunity protects public money and lets governments function without constant lawsuits. Critics say it leaves people harmed by government without a remedy and conflicts with the principle that no one is above the law.