Simon v. State Compensation Insurance Authority

The majority holds that the Colorado Compensation Insurance Authority (CCIA) is not an arm of the state for Eleventh Amendment purposes and consequently is a “person” that may be sued pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (1994). A review of the three factors used by the majority in making this determination leads me to a different result. Accordingly, I dissent.

I

Section 1983 provides that any “person” who, under color of state law, deprives an individual of his or her constitutional rights may be sued for damages. However, the United States Supreme Court has held that states, largely due to their…