Ninth Circuit Grants Preliminary Injunction Pending Appeal in City of Huntington Beach v. Newsom

In a significant victory for parental rights, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit granted a motion for reconsideration and issued a preliminary injunction pending appeal in City of Huntington Beach v. Gavin Newsom (No. 25-3826). A unanimous panel held that the objecting plaintiff parents likely have Article III standing and are likely to succeed on their substantive due process claim challenging California’s AB 1955 §§ 5 and 6.

These challenged provisions prevented parental notification requirements in schools when the parents’ children exhibit gender dysphoria, even if ​the school decides to take treatment into its own hands—all without the parents’ knowledge or approval. In preventing enforcement of AB 1955 §§ 5 and 6 against the movant parents, the court emphasized parents’ fundamental right to direct the upbringing and education of their children and not to be shut out of key decisions regarding their mental health. A copy of the opinion can be read here.

Schaerr | Jaffe attorneys Gene C. Schaerr, Donald M. Falk, Stephanie L. Freudenberg, and Justin A. Miller represented the plaintiff parents in this appeal. They were joined by counsel from America First Legal Nicholas Barry and Ian Prior and Huntington Beach City Attorney Michael J. Vigliotta. Schaerr | Jaffe Academic Affiliate James C. Phillips played a key role in case strategy. Senior Paralegal Kristina L. Robinson provided essential support throughout the litigation of the case.