Opinion ID: 485275
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Eleventh Amendment--State Officials

Text: 24 The analysis of eleventh amendment immunity in the case of state officials differs from that applicable to state entities. 6 The Supreme Court has recently summarized the law on this subject. The Court stated: 25 When a suit is brought only against state officials, a question arises as to whether that suit is a suit against the State itself.... The Eleventh Amendment bars a suit against state officials when the state is the real, substantial party in interest. Thus, [t]he general rule is that relief sought nominally against an officer is in fact against the sovereign if the decree would operate against the latter. And, as when the State itself is named as the defendant, a suit against state officials that is in fact a suit against a State is barred regardless of whether it seeks damages or injunctive relief. 26 The Court has recognized an important exception to this general rule: a suit challenging the constitutionality of a state official's action is not one against the State. This was the holding in Ex parte Young [209 U.S. 123, 28 S.Ct. 441, 52 L.Ed. 714 (1908) ] in which a federal court enjoined the Attorney General of the State of Minnesota from bringing suit to enforce a state statute that allegedly violated the Fourteenth Amendment. This Court held that the Eleventh Amendment did not prohibit issuance of this injunction. The theory of the case was that an unconstitutional enactment is void and therefore does not impart to [the officer] any immunity from responsibility to the supreme authority of the United States. Since the State could not authorize the action, the officer was stripped of his official or representative character and [was] subjected in his person to the consequences of his individual conduct. 27 While the rule permitting suits alleging conduct contrary to the supreme authority of the United States has survived, the theory of Young has not been provided an expansive interpretation. Thus, in Edelman v. Jordan [415 U.S. 651, 94 S.Ct. 1347, 39 L.Ed.2d 662 (1974) ] the Court emphasized that the Eleventh Amendment bars some forms of injunctive relief against state officials for violation of federal law. In particular, Edelman held that when a plaintiff sues a state official alleging a violation of federal law, the federal court may award an injunction that governs the official's future conduct, but not one that awards retroactive monetary relief. Under the theory of Young, such a suit would not be one against the State since the federal-law allegation would strip the state officer of his official authority. Nevertheless, retroactive relief was barred by the Eleventh Amendment. 28 Pennhurst State School & Hosp. v. Halderman, 465 U.S. 89, 101-03, 104 S.Ct. 900, 908-09, 79 L.Ed.2d 67, 79-80 (1984) (citations and footnotes omitted). In this case, Dr. Darlak has alleged that the defendant state officials acted unconstitutionally in suspending his staff privileges at the hospital without providing him with a due process hearing, and he seeks injunctive relief requiring the officials to rescind his suspension. Hence, that part of this case 7 is a suit seeking prospective injunctive relief against state officials who are alleged to have acted unconstitutionally, and therefore the Ex parte Young exception to the eleventh amendment applies and both the district court and this court have jurisdiction to reach the due process issue presented.