Bivens Actions Against Federal Officials

<h2>What is a Bivens Action?</h2><p>A Bivens action is a judicially created cause of action that allows individuals to sue federal officials for constitutional violations, analogous to Section 1983 claims against state officials. Named after the landmark Supreme Court case <em>Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of Federal Bureau of Narcotics</em> (1971), these claims provide a damages remedy when federal agents violate constitutional rights.</p><h2>Recognized Bivens Contexts</h2><ul><li><strong>Fourth Amendment:</strong> Unreasonable search and seizure by federal agents (the original <em>Bivens</em> context)</li><li><strong>Fifth Amendment:</strong> Gender discrimination by a federal employer (<em>Davis v. Passman</em>, 1979)</li><li><strong>Eighth Amendment:</strong> Inadequate medical care for federal prisoners (<em>Carlson v. Green</em>, 1980)</li></ul><h2>Recent Limitations</h2><p>The Supreme Court has significantly narrowed Bivens in recent years. In <em>Ziglar v. Abbasi</em> (2017) and <em>Egbert v. Boule</em> (2022), the Court made clear that extending Bivens to new contexts is now a "disfavored" judicial activity. Courts must apply a two-step analysis: (1) whether the claim arises in a "new context" and (2) whether "special factors" counsel against extending Bivens.</p>