Nixon v. Fitzgerald

Nixon v. Fitzgerald
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued November 30, 1981 Decided June 24, 1982
Full case name	Richard Nixon v. A. Ernest Fitzgerald
Citations	457 U.S. 731 (more) 102 S. Ct. 2690; 73 L. Ed. 2d 349; 1982 U.S. LEXIS 42; 50 U.S.L.W. 4797
Case history
Prior	Cert. to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
Holding
The President is entitled to absolute immunity from liability for damages based on his official acts.
Court membership
Chief Justice Warren E. Burger Associate Justices William J. Brennan Jr. · Byron White Thurgood Marshall · Harry Blackmun Lewis F. Powell Jr. · William Rehnquist John P. Stevens · Sandra Day O'Connor
Case opinions
Majority	Powell, joined by Burger, Rehnquist, Stevens, O'Connor
Concurrence	Burger
Dissent	White, joined by Brennan, Marshall, Blackmun
Dissent	Blackmun, joined by Brennan, Marshall

Nixon v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 731 (1982), was a US Supreme Court case that dealt with immunity from prosecution of government officials performing discretionary functions when their actions did not violate clearly-established law.^[1]

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Transcription

Background

Arthur Ernest Fitzgerald filed a lawsuit against government officials that he had lost his position as a contractor for the US Air Force because of testimony made before Congress in 1968.^[2] Among the people listed in the lawsuit was ex-President Richard Nixon, who argued that a president cannot be sued for actions taken while he is in office.^[3]

The trial court and the appellate court rejected Nixon's claim of immunity. The case was then appealed to the Supreme Court.^[4]

Opinion

In a 5–4 decision, the Court ruled that the President is entitled to absolute immunity from legal liability for civil damages based on his official acts. The Court, however, emphasized that the President is not necessarily immune from criminal charges stemming from his official or unofficial acts while he is in office.^[5]

The Court noted that a grant of absolute immunity to the President would not leave him with unfettered power. It stated that there were formal and informal checks on presidential action that did not apply with equal force to other executive officials.^[6]

The Court observed that the President was subjected to constant scrutiny by the press and noted that vigilant oversight by Congress would also serve to deter presidential abuses of office and to make the threat of impeachment credible. It determined that other incentives to avoid presidential misconduct existed, including the desire to earn re-election, the need to maintain prestige as an element of presidential influence, and the traditional concern for his historical stature.^[7]

The decision was clarified by Clinton v. Jones, in which the Court held that a President is subject to civil suits for actions committed before he assumes the presidency.^[5]^[8]

References

^ Nixon v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 731 (1982).
^ "Nixon v. Fitzgerald". Legal Information Institute. Retrieved September 6, 2018.
^ Stein, Theodore P. (1983). "Nixon v. Fitzgerald: Presidential Immunity as a Constitutional Imperative". Catholic University Law Review. Columbus School of Law. 32: 759.
^ Forry, Craig B. (March 15, 1983). "Nixon v. Fitzgerald: Recognition of Absolute Immunity From Personal Damage Liability for Presidential Acts". Pepperdine Law Review. Malibu, California: Pepperdine University School of Law. 10 (4): 674. Retrieved December 12, 2023.
^ ^a ^b Motos, Jennifer (1998). "Failing to Score: Clinton v. Jones and Claims of Presidential Immunity". Mercer Law Review. Macon, Georgia: Mercer University School of Law. 49: 583.
^ Motos, supra, pp. 583-584
^ Schultz, L. Peter (Spring 1986). "The Constitution, The Court, and Presidential Immunity: A Defense of Nixon v. Fitzgerald". Presidential Studies Quarterly. Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell. 16 (2): 256.
^ Clinton v. Jones, 520 U.S. 681 (1997).

External links

Text of Nixon v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 731 (1982) is available from: Cornell CourtListener Findlaw Google Scholar Justia Library of Congress Oyez (oral argument audio)

Richard Nixon

37th President of the United States (1969–1974)
36th Vice President of the United States (1953–1961)
U.S. Senator from California (1950–1953)
U.S. Representative for CA–12 (1947–1950)

Pre-presidency

Presidency
(timeline)

Foreign policy	International trips Nixon Doctrine Vietnam War Cambodian bombing Paris Peace Accords "Peace with Honor" Vietnamization Cold War period Linkage policy Tar Baby Option 1972 visit to China Shanghai Communiqué 1973 Chilean coup d'état Détente 1972 Moscow Summit Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty SALT I Treaty Prevention of Nuclear War Agreement Threshold Test Ban Treaty Operation CHAOS Space exploration
Domestic policy	Family Assistance Plan Revised Philadelphia Plan Minority Business Development Agency Native American policy Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act Education Amendments of 1972 Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants Title IX Rehabilitation Act of 1973 Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974 Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972 National Cancer Act of 1971 End Stage Renal Disease Program Supplemental Security Income Health Maintenance Organization Act of 1973 Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act Shafer Commission War on Drugs Drug Enforcement Administration Cannabis policy Federal Contested Elections Act Federal Election Campaign Act 1970 VRA Amendments District of Columbia Home Rule Act Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 Congressional Research Service
Economic policy	Bank Secrecy Act Fair Credit Reporting Act National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Urban Mass Transportation Act of 1970 Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1973 Nixon shock Economic Stabilization Act of 1970 Smithsonian Agreement Occupational Safety and Health Act National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Occupational Safety and Health Administration Permissible exposure limit U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Consumer Product Safety Act Lead-Based Paint Poisoning Prevention Act Poison Prevention Packaging Act of 1970 Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act Securities Investor Protection Act Securities Investor Protection Corporation Tax Reform Act of 1969 Alternative minimum tax Revenue Act of 1971 Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 Agricultural Act of 1970 Farm Credit Act of 1971 Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act of 1972 Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act of 1973 Federal Energy Administration Emergency Petroleum Allocation Act Emergency Daylight Saving Time Energy Conservation Act Trans-Alaska Pipeline Authorization Act
Environmental policy	Council on Environmental Quality Environmental Quality Improvement Act National Environmental Policy Act Environmental Protection Agency Clean Air Amendments of 1970 Clean Water Act Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act National Ambient Air Quality Standards National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants New Source Performance Standards Noise Control Act Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Coastal Zone Management Act Coastal Zone Management Program Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement Marine Mammal Protection Act Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 Endangered Species Act of 1969 Endangered Species Act of 1973 Oil Pollution Act of 1973 Water Resources Development Act of 1974
Watergate	Timeline Operation Sandwedge Operation Gemstone Saturday Night Massacre CRP White House Plumbers Watergate Seven Enemies List list of opponents White House tapes United States v. Nixon (1974) Senate Watergate Committee impeachment process "I am not a crook" Resignation Pardon