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Simple English definitions for legal terms
Eleventh Amendment
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A quick definition of Eleventh Amendment:
The Eleventh Amendment is a rule in the United States Constitution that says a person who is not a citizen of a state cannot sue that state in a federal court. This is called sovereign immunity, which means that the government cannot be sued without its permission. There are other types of immunity, like diplomatic immunity for foreign diplomats and parental immunity, which means that children cannot sue their parents and parents cannot sue their children for accidents or injuries.
A more thorough explanation:
The Eleventh Amendment is a part of the United States Constitution that was ratified in 1795. It prevents a federal court from hearing a case against a state by a person who is not a citizen of that state. This is known as sovereign immunity.
For example, if someone from New York wanted to sue the state of California in federal court, the Eleventh Amendment would prevent them from doing so.
Other types of immunity include:
- Executive immunity: The U.S. President or a state governor is immune from civil damages for actions that are within the scope of their official responsibilities.
- Judicial immunity: A judge is immune from civil liability arising from the performance of their judicial duties.
- Legislative immunity: A legislator is immune from civil liability arising from the performance of their legislative duties.
- Prosecutorial immunity: A prosecutor is absolutely immune from civil liability for decisions made and actions taken in a criminal prosecution.
These immunities are granted to certain public officials to protect them from being sued for actions taken in the course of their official duties. However, there are limitations to these immunities, and they do not protect officials from criminal prosecution or liability for actions taken outside of their official duties.