Cite as: 526 U. S. 603 (1999)
Opinion of the Court
II
Petitioners sued the federal officials under Bivens and the state officials under § 1983. Both Bivens and § 1983 allow a plaintiff to seek money damages from government officials who have violated his Fourth Amendment rights. See § 1983; Bivens, supra, at 397. But government officials performing discretionary functions generally are granted a qualified immunity and are "shielded from liability for civil damages insofar as their conduct does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known." Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U. S. 800, 818 (1982).
Although this case involves suits under both § 1983 and Bivens, the qualified immunity analysis is identical under either cause of action. See, e. g., Graham v. Connor, 490 U. S. 386, 394, n. 9 (1989); Malley v. Briggs, 475 U. S. 335, 340, n. 2 (1986). A court evaluating a claim of qualified immunity "must first determine whether the plaintiff has alleged the deprivation of an actual constitutional right at all, and if so, proceed to determine whether that right was clearly established at the time of the alleged violation." Conn v. Gab-bert, ante, at 290. This order of procedure is designed to "spare a defendant not only unwarranted liability, but unwar-ranted demands customarily imposed upon those defending a long drawn out lawsuit." Siegert v. Gilley, 500 U. S. 226, 232 (1991). Deciding the constitutional question before addressing the qualified immunity question also promotes clarity in the legal standards for official conduct, to the benefit of both the officers and the general public. See County of Sacramento v. Lewis, 523 U. S. 833, 840-842, n. 5 (1998). We now turn to the Fourth Amendment question.
In 1604, an English court made the now-famous observation that "the house of every one is to him as his castle and fortress, as well for his defence against injury and violence, as for his repose." Semayne's Case, 5 Co. Rep. 91a, 91b, 77
609
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