Qualified Immunity as a Defense to Federal Wiretap Act Claims

This Comment will examine whether qualified immunity should be available as a defense to Federal Wiretap Act claims given that the statute includes its own good faith defense. The basics of qualified immunity, the FWA, and its good faith defense, procedural differences between the two, and principles of statutory preclusion are addressed. The three recent federal cases discussing the FWA's good faith defense are compared. Older FWA cases and comparable statutes for guidance as to the congressional purpose of the FWA are analyzed. It is proposed that, in light of the purpose of the FWA, defendants should not be able to assert qualified immunity as a defense to FWA civil suits.