This guide covers constitutional tort litigation against government officials from intake through judgment. It sets out the elements of a Section 1983 claim, the meaning of acting under color of law, and how to select the governing constitutional standard based on the plaintiff's status. It treats qualified immunity as the operational obstacle it is, explaining the clearly established requirement, the sequencing question, and the interlocutory appeal that follows a denial. It covers municipal liability under Monell, including the four routes to a policy or custom and the pattern evidence that failure-to-train claims now require. It addresses Bivens claims against federal officers and the Federal Tort Claims Act alternative, absolute and sovereign immunities, the Heck bar, prisoner exhaustion, damages, and fee shifting. Pleading, discovery, and settlement guidance close it out.