Ussery v. Louisiana: The Fifth Circuit Determines that Congress Abrogated the States' Eleventh Amendment Immunity from Equal Pay Act Claims

Recent Development by Laura R. Starling

Alleging violations of Title VII and the Equal Pay Act, Karen Ussery sued her employer, the State of Louisiana, in federal court. The State moved for summary judgment, arguing that Ussery's claims against it were barred by the Eleventh Amendment. The United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana denied the motion, and the State filed an interlocutory appeal. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed and held that Congress abrogated the states' Eleventh Amendment sovereign immunity from Title VII and the Equal Pay Act claims when it amended Title VII and the Equal Pay Act to include states as employers. Ussery v. Louisiana, 150 F.3d 431 (5th Cir. 1998), cert. dismissed, 119 S. Ct. 1161 (1999).


About the Author

Laura R. Starling.

Citation

74 Tul. L. Rev. 365 (1999)