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Monday, November 9, 2026

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Courts · Monday, November 9, 2026

Supreme Court hears case on suing federal officers for money

The File desk · Nov. 9, 2026, 6:46 a.m. ET

Confirmed2 primary sourcesAdded 6:46 a.m. ET, Nov. 9

Status

Confirmed. Docket No. 25-417 says Francis Nielsen, Petitioner v. Kekai Watanabe, is set for argument on Monday, November 9, 2026. The question presented is whether the Ninth Circuit erred in recognizing a cause of action. The docket does not print an argument time. A decision is not in.
  • Confirmed
    The argument date, the case names, the Ninth Circuit number, the decision and rehearing dates, the grant of review, and the Solicitor General's divided-argument motion are on the docket or the question presented.
  • Confirmed
    The question presented describes , , and the respondent's allegation of a fractured coccyx from a prison gang fight.
The Supreme Court is set to hear today, Monday, November 9, 2026. The case asks when a person can sue a federal officer for money over a constitutional violation.1
The question presented is whether the Ninth Circuit erred in recognizing a cause of action. , from a 1971 case, is a court-made right to sue federal officers for money damages over a constitutional violation. The Court has said it will not extend that right to a new setting if there is any reason to think Congress might be better placed to create the remedy.2
That right has been extended before. The question presented says , in 1980, extended it to a claim that prison officials failed to treat an inmate's medical needs. The Ninth Circuit held that Watanabe's suit did not present a "new" context.2
Francis Nielsen is the petitioner, the side that asked the justices to review that ruling. The docket lists Ninth Circuit number 23-15605, a decision on September 6, 2024, and rehearing denied on June 5, 2025. The Court granted review on June 22, 2026. On October 13, 2026, it granted the Solicitor General's motion to take part in the argument and to split the time. This desk did not find an argument time on a Court page.1
Why it matters (Estimate). Estimate. People who would sue federal officers for money, and the officers who would be named, are who this argument is about. The Court is being asked whether this suit should have been allowed. No ruling is expected the day of the argument.
Watanabe alleged a fractured coccyx from a prison gang fight and said he was not sent to a hospital.2
How we know

Notes

  1. 1.Supreme Court docket, No. 25-417, Francis Nielsen, Petitioner v. Kekai Watanabe. Ninth Circuit case number 23-15605. Decision date September 6, 2024. Rehearing denied June 5, 2025. June 22, 2026: Petition GRANTED. August 11, 2026: "SET FOR ARGUMENT on Monday, November 9, 2026." October 13, 2026: Motion of the Solicitor General for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for divided argument GRANTED. Docket page creation date on the file is 11/06/2026. Retrieved 6:26 a.m. ET, Nov. 9. https://www.supremecourt.gov/docket/docketfiles/html/public/25-417.html
  2. 2.Question presented, No. 25-417. "CERT. GRANTED 6/22/2026." "Whether the Ninth Circuit here erred in recognizing a cause of action." The page describes of Federal Bureau of Narcotics, 403 U.S. 388 (1971), as the judicially created damages remedy, and , 446 U.S. 14 (1980), as the extension to a claim of deliberate indifference where prison officials failed to address an inmate's acute asthma attack. It says the respondent alleged a fractured coccyx in a prison gang fight and was not sent to a hospital, and that the Ninth Circuit held the suit did not present a "new" context. It quotes the Court's later cases for the rule that a court may not recognize a remedy if there is any reason to think Congress might be better equipped to create a damages remedy. Retrieved 6:26 a.m. ET, Nov. 9. https://www.supremecourt.gov/docket/docketfiles/html/qp/25-00417qp.pdf

What is still unknown or disputed

  • An argument time. The docket sets the day and does not print a clock. This desk did not open a page that states one.
  • How the justices will rule. A decision is not expected today.

Primary sources

Every claim in this story is drawn from the documents below. If a fetch failed, that is recorded on the card.

  1. Source 1

    Docket No. 25-417, Nielsen v. Watanabe

    Supreme Court of the United States · November 9, 2026

    Francis Nielsen, Petitioner v. Kekai Watanabe. Ninth Circuit No. 23-15605. Set for argument on Monday, November 9, 2026. Petition granted June 22, 2026. Solicitor General's motion for divided argument granted October 13, 2026.

    https://www.supremecourt.gov/docket/docketfiles/html/public/25-417.html

  2. Source 2

    Question presented, No. 25-417

    Supreme Court of the United States · June 22, 2026

    Whether the Ninth Circuit erred in recognizing a cause of action. Cert granted 6/22/2026. Respondent alleged a fractured coccyx from a prison gang fight.

    https://www.supremecourt.gov/docket/docketfiles/html/qp/25-00417qp.pdf