Parents have a constitutional right to be informed if their child changes their gender presentation at school, and schools can鈥檛 hide that information from parents, a federal judge in San Diego ruled in a class-action lawsuit.
In a 52-page handed down Monday night, Judge Roger Benitez ruled that parents have a constitutional right to know if their child may be transgender and that California public schools cannot in any way prevent employees from notifying parents. In a separate order, he barred them from violating that right.
The bans any public school employee from misleading parents about their child鈥檚 gender presentation at school, such as by using different pronouns or names with a parent than the student uses at school. The ruling also bars employees from calling students by names or pronouns that don鈥檛 match their legal ones if their parents object.
The state, which is defending the case, has already appealed and of Benitez鈥檚 decision. State attorneys said his injunction could bring significant harm to students by having schools out them without their consent.
鈥淭he Court鈥檚 sweeping injunction, which forecloses enforcement of state constitutional and statutory protections applicable in the school environment, inflicts severe and indisputable irreparable harm on California,鈥� lawyers with Attorney General Rob Bonta鈥檚 office wrote in their request.
Monday鈥檚 decision caps a in April 2023 by two now-former Escondido Union School District teachers, Elizabeth Mirabelli and Lori Ann West. Citing their Christian faith, the two challenged their district鈥檚 policy barring school employees from telling parents about a student鈥檚 transgender status without the student鈥檚 consent, arguing it violated their First Amendment rights.
The case has primarily been defended by the state, since Escondido based its policy off state guidance. The district has since changed its policy because of the litigation and no longer bars parental notification.
In granting the plaintiffs鈥� motion for summary judgment, Benitez, an appointee of former President George W. Bush, wrote that it鈥檚 wrong to deprive parents of significant information that may affect their child鈥檚 well-being and health. He also said the First Amendment protects teachers鈥� right to inform them.
Throughout his ruling, Benitez repeatedly invoked the Supreme Court鈥檚 decision earlier this year in Mahmoud v. Taylor, in which the justices sided with religious parents who wanted to opt their children out of reading books with LGBTQ+ content in public schools.
鈥淲e believe that the district court misapplied the law and that the decision will ultimately be reversed on appeal,鈥� a spokesperson for Bonta鈥檚 office said in an email Tuesday. 鈥淲e are committed to securing school environments that allow transgender students to safely participate as their authentic selves while recognizing the important role that parents play in students鈥� lives.鈥�
The teachers鈥� attorney Paul Jonna, special counsel with the conservative law firm the Thomas More Society, applauded the ruling.
鈥淭oday鈥檚 incredible victory finally, and permanently, ends California鈥檚 dangerous and unconstitutional regime of gender secrecy policies in schools,鈥� he said in a statement. 鈥淭he Court鈥檚 comprehensive ruling鈥攇ranting summary judgment on all claims鈥攑rotects all California parents, students, and teachers, and it restores sanity and common sense.鈥�
Meanwhile LGBTQ+ legal advocacy group Equality California called the decision dangerous, saying it broadly targets multiple state laws and protections for transgender and gender-nonconforming students.
鈥淭hese protections exist for one reason: to keep students safe and ensure schools remain places where young people can learn and thrive without fear,鈥� said Equality California Executive Director Tony Hoang in a statement.
State officials have argued that telling parents of possible changes to their child鈥檚 gender without the student鈥檚 permission would violate trust between students and teachers that is needed for a safe learning environment.
鈥淎 fear of nonconsensual disclosure can not only harm a student academically, but disincentivizes the type of open communication that allows the student to report instances of harm, bullying, or depression,鈥� state attorneys said in their stay request.
State attorneys have also argued that outing a student to parents could put them at risk of abuse.
But Benitez wrote that it鈥檚 wrong to assume that and said most parents want the best for their children. He suggested that being transgender involves health problems, such as mental health issues, and parents need to be able to seek medical care for their child.
His ruling cited testimony from Erica Anderson, a psychologist known for being critical of the number of young people identifying as transgender and saying they should not transition without their parents鈥� support.
In his ruling, Benitez also described having a transgender child as a burden to parents.
鈥淭he difficult and long-lasting issues of gender nonconformity leave parents to suffer adverse consequences over a lifetime. The State Defendants 鈥� will not be exposed to a lifetime of a student鈥檚 mental health issues. Instead, that will be the parents鈥� grief to bear alone,鈥� he wrote.
Hoang, of Equality California, said that parents should be involved in their children鈥檚 lives but such conversations about a child鈥檚 gender identity should happen when families are ready.
鈥淐alifornia鈥檚 student protections recognize the importance of family involvement, while also acknowledging that forcing a student to come out before they are ready can cause harm,鈥� Hoang said.
Since the former Escondido teachers filed their lawsuit in 2023, the state education department has backtracked on its policy regarding notifying parents.
The agency used to say on its website that public school employees must not tell parents or others about a student鈥檚 transgender status without the student鈥檚 consent.
It removed that guidance this year following a new state law, AB 1955, that bars schools from requiring staff to notify parents about a student鈥檚 gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation without the student鈥檚 consent.
That law does not go as far as to say that school employees must not tell parents. It only prohibits schools from requiring employees to do so.
