Documenting the law of qualified immunity for various rights and in various situations is likely to be the largest single topic in the Restatement.”

“In addition to officer suits, one class of defendants, local governments, can be sued directly, but only for acts reflecting official policy or custom,” continued Reporter Karlan. “Respondeat superior is not allowed. When localities are amenable to suit, they have no immunity. Thus, the identity of the defendant determines the liability rule and greatly increases the incentive of plaintiffs to sue localities, rather than officers, whenever possible. On occasion, there is liability for policy-by-omission, for example, for failures to train government employees who then commit constitutional violations. Charting the line between these statements is exceedingly difficult and will be a major topic for the Restatement.”