Alden v. Maine
United States Supreme Court
527 U.S. 706 (1999)
Relevant factsFree
Alden and other Maine probation officers (plaintiffs) sued the state for Fair Labor Standards Act overtime violations in federal court, but the suit was dismissed after Seminole Tribe held Congress lacks Article I power to abrogate state sovereign immunity in federal court; they refiled the identical suit in Maine state court, which was also dismissed on sovereign-immunity grounds and affirmed by Maine's highest court.
IssueFree
Whether Congress, under its Article I powers, may authorize private damages suits against non-consenting state governments in state court.