| Monell v. City of New York Department of Social Services | ||||||
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Supreme Court of the United States |
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| Argued November 2, 1972 Decided June 6, 1978 |
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| Full case name | Monell, et al. v. Department of Social Services of the City of New York et al. | |||||
| Holding | ||||||
| Municipalities can be held liable for violations of Constitutional rights through Section 1983 actions. | ||||||
| Court membership | ||||||
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| Case opinions | ||||||
| Majority | Brennan, joined by Stewart, White, Marshall, Blackmun and Powell. | |||||
| Concurrence | Powell | |||||
| Concurrence | Stevens | |||||
| Dissent | Rehnquist, joined by Burger | |||||
| Laws applied | ||||||
| Fourteenth Amendment, Section 1 of the "Ku Klux Act" of April 20, 1871 | ||||||
Monell v. City of New York Department of Social Services, 436 U.S. 658 (1978) was a case decided by the United States Supreme Court in which the Court overruled Monroe v. Pape in holding that government agencies qualify as "persons" under Section 1983.[1]
The case began in July 1971 as a challenge to the New York City Board of Education's forced maternity leave policies. In a different lawsuit in 1978, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that cities were liable for damages under the Civil Rights Act. Following the decision, New York settled for $375,500, to be divided among all women employees placed on forced maternity leave from July 1968 to the time of the case being filed. New York increased the money available for compensations to $11 million after an unexpectedly large response from women to notices announcing the settlement. The claims were paid in the fall of 1981.[2]
This resolution created a precedent that for the first time established local government accountability for unconstitutional acts and created the right to obtain damages from municipalities in such cases.