The part of the Civil Rights Act of primary concern to public school administrators is Section 1983, which permits litigation against school personnel as representatives of public school districts, which are local governmental units according to the law. A review of court cases allows generalizations including the following. Section 1983 is a vehicle to carry into court a wide variety of lawsuits pertinent to the governance and operation of the public schools as they impact on "settled, undisputed" federal rights of students, teachers, and other people. The nature of the qualified immunity defense against damages in a Section 1983 action is subjective and objective. Such a defense is an affirmative defense and must be included in the written answer to the complaint. The award of compensatory damages is a matter largely left to the discretion of the trial court. The award of punitive damages is permitted. A Section 1983 suit may be instituted in either the local federal or state court. Section 1983 actions require that school people be students of the law to the extent that they have a "reasonable" knowledge of the expanding federal rights of students and public school employees. (Author/IRT)