Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994)

E403305

Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994), is a U.S. Supreme Court decision that limits when prisoners can seek damages under § 1983 by holding that such claims are barred if success would necessarily imply the invalidity of an outstanding criminal conviction or sentence unless that conviction has been overturned.

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Label Occurrences
Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994) canonical 2

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Statements (47)

Predicate Object
instanceOf United States Supreme Court case
federal civil rights case
appliesTo federal prisoners
state prisoners
areaOfLaw civil rights law
constitutional law
federal courts
habeas corpus
arguedDate November 3, 1993
citation 512 U.S. 477
citationStyle Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994) self-linksurface differs
concurrenceBy David H. Souter
Harry A. Blackmun
John Paul Stevens
country United States of America
surface form: United States
court Supreme Court of the United States
decidedDate June 24, 1994
decisionDate 1994
docketNumber 93-6188
effect channels challenges to the validity of convictions primarily into habeas corpus proceedings
limits use of § 1983 to collaterally attack criminal convictions
holding A state prisoner cannot recover damages under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for allegedly unconstitutional conviction or imprisonment, or for other harm caused by actions whose unlawfulness would render a conviction or sentence invalid, unless the conviction or sentence has been reversed, expunged, declared invalid, or called into question by a federal habeas writ.
A § 1983 claim for damages that would necessarily imply the invalidity of an outstanding criminal conviction or sentence does not accrue until the conviction or sentence has been invalidated.
joinedByInMajority Anthony M. Kennedy
Clarence Thomas
Sandra Day O’Connor
William H. Rehnquist
jurisdiction United States federal law
legalDoctrine Heck
surface form: Heck bar

favorable termination requirement for § 1983 damages actions challenging convictions
legalProvisionInvolved 28 U.S.C. § 2254
42 U.S.C. § 1983
legalRule Known as the Heck bar, § 1983 damages actions are barred if success would necessarily imply the invalidity of a conviction or sentence that has not been set aside.
majorityOpinionBy Antonin Scalia
overruledBy none
page 477
petitioner Roy Heck
precedentFor Edwards v. Balisok
McDonough v. Smith
Wallace v. Kato
Wilkinson v. Dotson
relatedConcept 42 U.S.C. § 1983 damages actions
habeas corpus as exclusive remedy for challenges to fact or duration of confinement
reporter United States Reports
respondent Humphrey
status good law as of 2024
volume 512

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (2)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

42 U.S.C. § 1983 interpretedBy Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994)
Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994) citationStyle Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994) self-linksurface differs
subject surface form: Heck v. Humphrey