Suing a State

The court makes it easier

With eight children to support, Lionel and Joline Thiboutot could scarcely afford the reduction in federal welfare benefits required under Maine's new method of computing such payments. When their initial protests failed, the couple turned to the courts, and last week the Supreme Court ruled that Maine must pay them their benefits. In their 6-to-3 decision, the Justices broke new legal ground: they held that states can be sued under the Civil Rights Act of 1871 for violating a citizen's rights created under any federal statutes.

The Reconstruction era law was designed to protect the newly freed slaves from loss of constitutional rights. In 1874 it was revised to refer to violations of federal laws as well. Still, until the Thiboutots used the statute, it was doubtful whether it could be employed to sue for anything other than deprivation of civil rights.

The majority, led by Justice William Brennan, declared that the old act did indeed allow individuals to sue states for violating federal law. What is more, the court ruled that under a 1976 statute, successful plaintiffs may recover legal fees from the losing party in such cases. In a 23-page dissent, Justice Lewis Powell scolded the majority for ignoring "the lessons of history, logic, and policy" in extending the act beyond protection of civil rights. He predicted a rash of suits against the states for their handling of food stamps, educational benefits and other federal programs.

While the American Civil Liberties Union praised the decision for giving citizens another means of redressing wrongs, others were highly critical. Said University of Virginia Law Professor A. E. Dick Howard: "I have problems with taking a statute aimed at discrimination against blacks at a time when government didn't care about handing out benefits, and applying it 100 years later in a totally different age." The National Governors' Association, in fact, is so worried by the high court's ruling that it may establish a legal defense fund to help its members combat the expected onslaught of suits.

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