Opinion ID: 1730919
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: does the principle of sovereign immunity, as enacted by the legislature, violate the due process clause of the mississippi state constitution?

Text: Robinson complains that the legislature's deferral of her right to sue the state is a violation of due process. See Miss. Const., art. III, § 14. However, this Court has noted that the Immunity Act, Miss. Code Ann. § 11-46-1 et seq., as enacted by the post- Pruett legislature, has continually protected the state against suit. Richardson v. Rankin County Sch. Dist., 540 So.2d 5, 8 (Miss. 1989) (not ruling on constitutional grounds). Prior to Pruett, common law allowed no right to sue against the government. Wells v. Panola County Bd. of Educ., 645 So.2d at 891. A due process violation requires the infringement of a liberty or property right. Tucker v. Hinds County, 558 So.2d 869, 873 (Miss. 1990) (holding possession of property interest protected by Mississippi Due Process Clause necessary to pierce sovereign immunity). As the legislature has withheld that right through its statutes, there is no property right to sue the state. No due process violation of the Mississippi Constitution has therefore occurred.