Filarsky v. Delia, 132 S. Ct. 1657

Delia, a Rialto firefighter, became ill responding to a toxic spill and missed work; the City hired private investigators to surveil him.
Private attorney Filarsky, retained to conduct an internal investigation, conducted interviews and proposed orders to obtain Delia’s building materials to verify his claim of illness.
Delia refused to consent to a home search; after threats of disciplinary action, Filarsky ordered production of materials, which Delia complied with.
Delia filed §1983 claims alleging Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment violations; the district court and Ninth Circuit held some defendants, including Filarsky, were protected or not protected by immunity.
The Supreme Court granted certiorari to resolve whether a private individual working with the government can receive qualified immunity under §1983, and how common-law immunity applies to non-full-time government workers.
The Court reversed the Ninth Circuit, holding that a private individual working with the government to perform public duties may be shielded by qualified immunity under §1983.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether a private attorney retained by a city to investigate qualifies for qualified immunity under §1983 for investigative actions	Delia argued private actor had no immunity	Filarsky and city contended immunity extends to private contractors aiding government	Yes, Filarsky entitled to qualified immunity
Whether common-law immunity extends to non-full-time government workers	Immunity should not extend to non-employees	Immunity should be extension to those assisting government	Immunity extends irrespective of full-time status
Whether extending immunity to private contractors undermines the government’s functioning	Could deter government actions due to liability risk	Needed to attract talent and prevent timidity in public service	Immunity consistent with preserving government function and attracting specialized workers
Whether distinctions based on employment status are compatible with §1983 immunity principles	Differentiating employees from contractors is appropriate	Such distinctions create line-drawing problems and uncertainty	Distinction rejected; immunity applies based on function, not title

Lugar v. Edmondson Oil Co., 457 U.S. 922 (1982) (establishes state-action and immunities framework under §1983)
Imbler v. Pachtman, 424 U.S. 409 (1976) (common-law immunities incorporated into §1983 analysis)
Wyatt v. Cole, 504 U.S. 158 (1992) (limits immunity extensions to private ends not connected to public office)
Richardson v. McKnight, 521 U.S. 399 (1997) (private prison guards' immunity context; narrow holding for private actors in certain settings)
Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223 (2009) (qualified immunity analysis steps clarified; use of objective inquiry)