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Sovereign Immunity Doesn’t Bar Attorney Fee Award Against Georgia DOC
Sovereign Immunity Doesn’t Bar Attorney Fee Award Against Georgia DOC
by David Reutter
The Georgia Supreme Court held on June 16, 2014 that sovereign immunity does not bar an award of attorney fees and litigation costs against the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDOC).
The ruling resulted …
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More from this issue:
- News in Brief
- Third Circuit Denies Intervention in CRIPA Class-Action Suit, by Mark Wilson
- Pennsylvania: Wexford Settles Case Involving Death of Prisoner’s Baby
- Deaths at South Carolina Jail Under Investigation; Multiple Lawsuits Filed
- Eighth Circuit Reverses Denial of Qualified Immunity; Prisoner Proved Neglect, Not Deliberate Indifference, by Mark Wilson
- $66,000 Jury Award in New Mexico CCA Sexual Abuse, Retaliation Case, by Matthew Clarke
- Texas Court Reexamines Test for Misconduct by Forensic Scientist, by Mark Wilson
- Summary Judgment Denied in California Jail Excessive Force Death; $8.3 Million Settlement Plus Injunctive Relief, by Mark Wilson
- $1.3 Million Settlement in Prisoner’s Death at Michigan Jail; Claims Against Other Defendants Dismissed
- Exonerated Texas Prisoner’s Ex-Wife Not Entitled to Compensation, by Matthew Clarke
- Cell phones are “Dangerous Contraband” for New York Felony Contraband Possession, by Mark Wilson
- Ninth Circuit: 27-Month Segregation Implicates Due Process Liberty Interest, by Mark Wilson
- Ninth Circuit: No Summary Judgment on Male Guard Supervision of Female Prisoners Ban, by Mark Wilson
- PLN Partly Prevails in Censorship Suit against Georgia Jail; $10,000 in Damages
- California: Authorized Possession of Legal Materials Cannot Serve as Basis for Gang Validation
- Claim Alleging Guard Slammed Prisoner’s Head into Wall Defeats Summary Judgment, by David Reutter
- Kentucky Death Row Prisoners Win Appeal on Religious Accommodations, by Derek Gilna
- Disciplinary Self-Help Litigation Manual, 2d Ed., by Dan Manville, by John Dannenberg
- Sovereign Immunity Doesn’t Bar Attorney Fee Award Against Georgia DOC, by David Reutter
- Screening Out Family Time: The For-Profit Video Visitation Industry in Prisons and Jails, by Bernadette Rabuy
- Former Virginia Executioner Now an Anti-Death Penalty Activist
- Former Michigan Supreme Court Justice Freed from Prison
- Oregon Probation Extended for Inability to Pay Financial Obligations, by Mark Wilson
- Illinois Prisoner Receives $12 Million Jury Award in Medical Neglect Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- Kosher Meals Lawsuit Against Nevada DOC Dismissed, by Matthew Clarke
- CDCR Employees Investigated, Lose Jobs for Cell Phone Smuggling
- Rhode Island Prison Guards Collect Double-Time-and-a-Half during States of Emergency
- GEO Group’s Florida Immigration Detention Center “Horrifying”, by David Reutter
- Georgia Deputies Liable for Detaining and Stripping Man in Debt Judgment Execution, by David Reutter
- “Damning” Audit Sharply Criticizes Corizon in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, by Greg Dober
- Third Circuit Affirms Nominal Damages, Reverses PLRA Fee Cap Order, by Mark Wilson
- Lawsuits Over Riot at CCA Prison in Colorado Settle for $600,000, by Derek Gilna
- Federal Court Caseloads Threaten Constitutional Protections, by Matthew Clarke
- Ninth Circuit Reverses Dismissal of California ADA Suit Against Parole Officers, by Derek Gilna
- The United States and Torture, by William Blum
- Arizona DOC Director Blames Job Stress for Hundreds of Employee Arrests
- Texas Sex Offender Oversight Agency Faces Investigations, Calls for Reform, by Matthew Clarke
- Murders in Maryland Prisons Continue Despite Reforms
- Michigan Governor Lacks Authority to Revoke Commutations, by David Reutter
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Private Prison Information Act Reintroduced in Congress with PLN’s Help
More from David Reutter:
- The Malleable Mind in the Courtroom: Why Confident Eyewitnesses Often Provide the Least Reliable Evidence, Oct. 15, 2025
- Help Wanted: 31,000 Prison Guard Jobs Open Nationwide, Sept. 1, 2025
- Fifth Circuit Greenlights Federal Takeover of Mississippi Jail, Aug. 1, 2025
- Ninth Circuit Revives Prisoner’s Claim Based on Guard’s Thwarting of Administrative Remedies, Aug. 1, 2025
- Tenth Circuit Ruling Paves Way for $2.7 Million Settlement for Intellectually Disabled Jail Detainee Raped by Sheriff, Aug. 1, 2025
- Ninth Circuit Agrees That Former Guantanamo Detainee Lacks Grounds to Sue for Waterboarding, Aug. 1, 2025
- Qualified Immunity Denied for Iowa Prison Doctor’s MRI Delay for Non-Medical Reasons, Aug. 1, 2025
- Ninth Circuit: Continuing-Violations Doctrine Applies for PLRA Administrative Exhaustion Purposes, Aug. 1, 2025
- First Circuit: Prosecutor’s Breach of Plea Agreement Requires Government’s Specific Performance of Agreement, Not Specific Performance by District Court, Aug. 1, 2025
- Oregon Prisoners Can Now Seek Economic Damages for Future Lost Income More Easily, July 15, 2025
More from these topics:
- $4,652 for Jewish Nevada Prisoner Denied Passover Meal, Jan. 1, 2026. Religious Discrimination, Food, Settlements, First Amendment, rights, Dismissal.
- HRDC Sues New Mexico County for Violating 10-Year-Old Settlement of Censorship Suit, Jan. 1, 2026. Settlements, Publications/Books, Due Process, Censorship, First Amendment.
- The Legal Fight for Homeowner Compensation After SWAT Raids, Dec. 15, 2025. Sovereign Immunity, Fifth Amendment, Constitution, state, Destruction of Property.
- $4 Million Settlement Reached in Class Action Challenge to Conditions at Shuttered St. Louis “Workhouse” Jail, Dec. 1, 2025. Totality of Conditions, Jail Specific, Settlements, Class Certification.
- $6.49 Million Settlement for 600,000 Prisoners in Massive CorrectCare Data Breach Class Action, Dec. 1, 2025. Private Contractors, Medical Records, Damages, Settlements, Privacy Act/Rights.
- Arkansas Prison Reaches ADA Settlement, Dec. 1, 2025. Disabled Prisoners, Systemic Medical Neglect, Water, Settlements, Americans with Disabilities Act.
- Over $222,000 in Legal Costs and Fees Awarded to HRDC in Florida Records Suit Against Centurion, Dec. 1, 2025. Attorney Fee Awards, Costs, Disclosure of Records, Public Records, Public Records Act.
- $2.4 Million Paid to Indiana Prisoners Sickened With Legionnaire’s Disease by Contaminated Water, Nov. 1, 2025. Contagious Disease -- Misc., Water, Settlements, Municipal Liability, Medical Neglect/Malpractice.
- $1.8 Million Settlement Reached Following CDCR Data Breach, Nov. 1, 2025. DOC/BOP misconduct, Medical Records, Settlements, Class Certification, Disclosure of Records, Class Notice, Public Records, Restitution, Trust Accounts.
- Federal Government, CoreCivic Slow-Walk Class-Action Challenges to Forced Labor of ICE Detainees, Nov. 1, 2025. Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Prison Labor, Class Certification, Class Notice, Sovereign Immunity, Immigration Detention.

