Can You Sue a Private Company for Constitutional Violations?

Generally speaking, the Constitution only applies to public entities: government officials, state and federal departments, law enforcement offices, etc. You generally can’t file a civil rights lawsuit against a social media company, for example, or a private store for violating your constitutional rights. (There may be other laws that you can use, but not the U.S. or state constitutions.) That said, sometimes private companies are doing government work. When a private company is under contract to the government, they can be sued for violating your constitutional rights.