In the case of Fitzpatrick et al. v. Bitzer, Chairman, State Employees' Retirement Commission et al., the Supreme Court ruled that Congress has the authority to abrogate state sovereign immunity under Section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment in order to enforce equal protection and due process rights. The case arose when Connecticut state employees sued their employer for back pay after a discriminatory statute was declared unconstitutional. Initially, it was argued that states were immune from such suits under the Eleventh Amendment; however, this argument was rejected by lower courts and eventually by the Supreme Court as well. The court held that while states generally have immunity from lawsuits seeking monetary damages, Congress can override this immunity if it is necessary to enforce constitutional protections against discrimination.

In the dissenting opinion for Fitzpatrick v. Bitzer, Justice Rehnquist argued that Congress did not have the authority to allow individuals to sue states for monetary damages under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. He believed that this interpretation was inconsistent with both historical understanding and precedent regarding Congressional power over state governments under Section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment. According to him, allowing such lawsuits would infringe upon state sovereignty protected by the Eleventh Amendment. Furthermore, he contended that when Congress enacted Title VII it had no intention or expectation that it would apply against States in their capacity as employers; therefore, its later amendment should not be interpreted so broadly as to permit suits for retroactive money damages against States in federal courts.