Parental Rights and Gender Transition in Schools

This episode contains a Supreme Court of the United States per curiam opinion and subsequent opinions from a 2026 case regarding California’s school policies on student gender identity. The Court vacated a stay issued by the Ninth Circuit, effectively reinstating a lower court's injunction that prevents schools from withholding information about a child’s gender transition from their parents. The majority concluded that parents are likely to succeed on the merits of their claims under the Free Exercise Clause and the Due Process Clause, emphasizing the fundamental right of parents to direct their children's upbringing and mental health. In a concurrence, Justice Barrett defended the use of the emergency docket to prevent irreparable harm to the parent-child relationship during the appeals process. Conversely, Justice Kagan’s dissent criticized the Court for bypassing regular appellate procedures and questioned the majority's sudden embrace of substantive due process to reach its conclusion.