I joined Short Circuit (@shortcircuitij.bsky.social) to discuss my forthcoming article, Section 1983: A Strict Liability Statutory Tort (@califlrev.bsky.social). If you’re into civil rights litigation, qualified immunity, or tort theory, check it out! Here's a thread about the basic argument (1/8)

My torts exam writes itself.

It's worth asking how differently things might look on the ground right now if #SCOTUS hadn't eviscerated Bivens—and made it all-but impossible to bring damages suits against federal officers (like ICE agents) who violate our constitutional rights.

This is from my rebuttal in Hernández v. Mesa:

Sincerely wondering: what remedies does Justice Kavanaugh believe are and should be available in federal court these days for excessive force violations by federal immigration officials?

Fiona definitely did not find the “lighted squib” case as engaging as I do!

First day of torts @uscgould.bsky.social? ✅ It was so much fun to see the reactions of 1Ls when presented with the choice between negligence v. strict liability (especially at 8:00 AM!). This is a going to be a great class!

In the latest episode of Court Briefs, my colleague (and soon-to-be USC law professor) @matteogodi.bsky.social joins me to talk about the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Kousisis v. United States, on the scope of the federal wire-fraud statute:

Truly a dream come true to go on @strictscrutiny.bsky.social — somehow the peerless @leahlitman.bsky.social managed to make talking about even these depressing legal developments lots of fun

Much of the reporting notes this will hurt schools that rely on foreign students to boost their finances. But, really, this primarily hurts the students—including many on financial aid, seeking a visa to become the first in their families to graduate from college. I was one of them. Just terrible.

The famous rallying cry was “no more Souters.” But I wonder whether, in this fractious time, we actually need more David Souters, rather than fewer. On this gray morning, the world certainly feels like a poorer place without David Souter in it. RIP.

I’m going out on a limb here by guessing that the pawing followed by a sneeze (clear sign of annoyance) plus a yawn-bark-yawn (???) means she is done with tort law for the evening

Jotwell Torts:
Anthony Sebok, The Return of Private Law, JOTWELL (April 24, 2025) (reviewing Yotam Kaplan, Adi Libson, & Gideon Parchomovsky, The Renaissance of Private Law, 19 Nw. U. L. Rev. 1427 (2025)), torts.jotwell.com/the-return-o....

The Rights and Wrongs of Constitutional Torts - Torts buff.ly/fmLMXTf

I’m immensely grateful to Dean John C.P. Goldberg (@hls.harvard.edu) for his kind and thoughtful review, over at Jotwell, of my forthcoming article in the California Law Review on Section 1983 and tort law. (1/3)

Hi! 👋🏼 I’m new here. For the past few years, I’ve spent the day working as an appellate lawyer and the night writing about torts. Not sure I’ve done half a decent job at either! (1/2)