the 11th Amendment

Constitution of the United States, via FindLaw et al ^ | passed by the Congress on March 4, 1794 and was ratified on February 7, 1795 | The Framers et al

[SunkenCiv]

The Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects of any Foreign State.

[SunkenCiv]

FindLaw's commentary (page 2):

In the 1980s four Justices, led by Justice Brennan, argued that Hans was incorrectly decided, that the Amendment was intended only to deny jurisdiction against the States in diversity cases, and that Hans and its progeny should be overruled. But the remaining five Justices adhered to Hans and in fact stiffened it with a rule of construction quite severe in its effect. The Hans interpretation has been solidified with the Court's ruling in Seminole Tribe of Florida v. Florida, that Congress lacks the power under Article I to abrogate state immunity under the Eleventh Amendment. That too, however, was a 5-4 decision, with the four dissenting Justices believing that Hans was wrongly decided.

[SunkenCiv]

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[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

Great post.

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

Free the Marines and Border Patrol!

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks!

[4CJ]

The eleventh was a direct response to the Supreme Court's egregious decision in Chisholm v. Georgia, 2 Dall. 419 (1793), a conflict between federal jurisdiction and state sovereignty. The plaintiff - Alexander Chisholm, a citizen of South Carolina and the executor of the estate of Robert Farquar, sued the state of Georgia for $769,613.33 [$169,613.33, the value of clothing provided by Farquar during the Revolutionary War, and $500,000 in damages].

The court (4-1) held that Chisholm could sue Georgia under Article 3§2 of the Constitution, which extends federal judicial power to cases “between a State and Citizens of another State.” During the constitutional debates it was argued that the literal order of the clause was correct, a state may sue citizens of another state, but not vice versa.

Georgia refused to appear in federal court, in that it had already paid the agents, who were to pay Farquar, and claimed sovereign immunity.

After the court ruled against Georgia, the House voted 81–9 in favor of the proposed amendment, the Senate 23–2.

[Repeal 16-17]

Chisholm v. Georgia helped precipitate the Eleventh Amendment, but the Supreme Court is wrong when it has referred to that case as if it was the but for cause for the amendment's adoption. Read Leaving the Chisholm Trail: The Eleventh Amendment and the Background Principle of Strict Construction for a fuller explanation (copy & paste link below).

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1147764