Case law

In Re: Ken Paxton

53 F.4th 303 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Nov 14, 2022

Even 2 Carswell addressed qualified immunity but is pertinent here because, like sovereign immunity, qualified immunity provides “immunity from suit rather than a mere defense to liability … We rejected this gambit, explaining that it “turn[ed] qualified immunity on its head” by opening the defendants to deposition before adjudication of their immunity defense. Ibid. So too here.

Rolf v. City of San Antonio

74 F.3d 81 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Feb 5, 1996

Qualified immunity Qualified immunity "shields certain public officials performing discretionary functions from civil damage liability if "their actions could reasonably have been thought … Similarly, reasonable officials would have understood that their actions deprived appellants of their clearly established 27 Id. 28 Duckett v.

Fraire v. City Of Arlington

957 F.2d 1268 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · May 7, 1992

Lowery claimed the defense of qualified immunity. 20 The district court dismissed the § 1983 action against Lowery. … alleged to have violated." 12 Whether a defendant asserting qualified immunity may be personally liable turns on the objective legal reasonableness of the defendant's actions assessed in light of clearly established law.

Hamilton v. City of Wilmer, Texas

140 F.4th 650 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Jun 16, 2025

The Eleventh Circuit also affirmed the district court’s con- clusion that Franks would be entitled to qualified immunity because he had violated no clearly established law. Id. … , he could not overcome the defendants’ qualified immunity defense.

Maria Pena v. City of Rio Grande City, Texa

879 F.3d 613 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Jan 12, 2018

Qualified Immunity Having determined that Peña sufficiently pleaded Fourth Amendment violations by both officers, we would ordinarily turn to QI and decide whether said violations were clearly established at the time … The district court dismissed that claim because Peña was “unable to establish that sovereign immunity ha[d] been waived.” We agree.

Rios v. City of Del Rio TX

444 F.3d 417 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Mar 27, 2006

GARWOOD, Circuit Judge: This is an appeal from the denial of a motion to dismiss on the basis of qualified immunity. … If no constitutional right would have been violated were the allegations established, there is no necessity for further inquiries concerning qualified immunity.”

Thorne v. Jones

765 F.2d 1270 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Jul 22, 1985

Qualified Immunity Finally, LSP contends that the trial court erred in rejecting the individual defendants’ defenses of qualified, or “good faith,” immunity from liability for money damages. Under Harlow v. … Whether an official may prevail in his qualified immunity defense depends upon the ‘objective reasonableness of [his] conduct as measured by reference to clearly established law.’

Ralph Janvey v. Libyan Investment Authority

840 F.3d 248 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Oct 26, 2016

The FSIA uses it to determine whether an ‘agency’ of the state may potentially qualify for foreign sovereign immunity itself under the FSIA. … [T]he level of state control required to establish an ‘alter ego’ relationship is more extensive than that required to establish FSIA ‘agency.’” Hester Int’l Corp. v. Fed.

Freeman v. County of Bexar

210 F.3d 550 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · May 4, 2000

. § 1983 case, Appellant Lillian Freeman challenges the district court's entry of summary judgment granting Officer John Jennings and Detective George Saidler qualified immunity. … Even if officers of reasonable competence could disagree on this issue, the Appellees are still entitled to qualified immunity.

Eric Smith v. Steve Brenoettsy, Lieutenant, John P. Whitley, Warden

158 F.3d 908 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Nov 5, 1998

Whitley then filed a motion for summary judgment, assert *911 ing qualified immunity,' 3 which Smith failed to answer. … Not surprisingly, Whitley does not contend that the prohibition against Brengettsy’s alleged actions was not clearly established.

Calvin Walker v. Beaumont Indep School Dist

938 F.3d 724 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Sep 18, 2019

Once a defendant raises qualified immunity, the court evaluates the objective legal reasonableness of the defendant’s conduct in light of legal rules clearly established as of the time of the defendant’s action. … Based on these facts, Walker’s challenge to the district court’s qualified immunity ruling on this issue is unwarranted.

De La Paz v. Coy

786 F.3d 367 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · May 14, 2015

Our jurisdiction over qualified immunity appeals extends to “elements of the asserted cause of action” that are “directly implicated by the defense of qualified immunity! … material facts, the agents have qualified immunity.

United Steel, Paper and Forest v. Anderson

9 F.4th 328 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Aug 17, 2021

U.S. 731, 735 (2011) (to overcome qualified immunity, plaintiff must show that (1) “the official violated a statutory or constitutional right,” and (2) “the right was ‘clearly established’ at the time of the challenged … The district court reached the same conclusion by relying on the “clearly established law” prong of qualified immunity.

James Terry, Jr. v. City of New Orleans

Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Jun 24, 2010

Jurisdiction and Standard of Review “The doctrine of qualified immunity protects government officials ‘from liability for civil damages insofar as their conduct does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional … Based on these principles, the Warden’s conduct did not violate clearly established law.

Clay v. Allen

242 F.3d 679 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Mar 16, 2001

However, Allen enjoys only qualified immunity for those routine duties not explicitly commanded by a court decree or by the judge’s instructions. Id. … The current state of the record does not permit consideration of whether Allen’s actions entitle him to qualified immunity.

Samaad v. City of Dallas

940 F.2d 925 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Aug 23, 1991

It held that section 1983 claimants must establish that the defendant’s conduct violated “clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known.” … question of whether the plaintiff asserted a violation of a “clearly established” right.

Dr. Bertrand O. Tyson v. Lt. Clarence J. Cazes

363 F.2d 742 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Jul 25, 1966

The district court held that section 202 does no more than provide immunity from prosecution for the bar owner wishing to desegregate his establishment in violation of local separate-service ordinances. … The plaintiff observes that immunity for the owner of an establishment is expressly granted in section 203 of the Act (42 U.S.C. § 2000a-2), the general immunity provision. 8 .

Kimberly Doe v. USA

831 F.3d 309 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Jul 27, 2016

In other words, we held that the officials’ actions were objectively reasonable in light of then clearly established law entitling them to qualified immunity. See id. … In this appeal, we set aside the objective “clearly established law” requirement, which is traditionally confined to the qualified immunity context.

Betts v. Brennan

Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Jan 13, 2022

An officer merits qualified immunity unless (1) he “violated a statutory or constitutional right of the plaintiff” and (2) “the right was clearly established at the time of the violation.” Dyer v. … Even assuming a Fourth Amendment violation, prong two of the qualified immunity analysis asks whether the right was “clearly established at the time.” District of Columbia v. Wesby, --- U.S. ---, 138 S.

Chavez v. Arte Publico Press

204 F.3d 601 · Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Aug 1, 1995

As the Court's decisions now stand, the University's claim of sovereign immunity must fail, although its employee Kanellos prevails on qualified immunity. … Kanellos also asserted his qualified immunity. The district court denied the motions, allowing the lawsuit to proceed.