In City of Huntington Beach v. Newsom, No. 25-3826, the three-judge panel enjoined defendants from enforcing Sections 5 and 6 of AB 1955 as to the Plaintiff-Parents with respect to information about their children. The Ninth Circuit reconsidered its prior denials of preliminary injunctive relief in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Mirabelli v. Bonta, 607 U.S. 492 (2026), and found that the plaintiff parents satisfied all requirements for emergency relief. The court held that the parents “very likely have standing because they are objects of the challenged exclusion policies,” regardless of “any individualized showing as to whether a particular parent’s child was likely to exhibit gender dysphoria.”

The court further declared that “parents—not the State—have primary authority with respect to the upbringing and education of children” and “have the right not to be shut out of participation in decisions regarding their children’s mental health.” The Ninth Circuit concluded that AB 1955 “forbids the mandatory policies that the Constitution requires” regarding disclosure of gender dysphoria information to parents and that “[t]he deprivation of constitutional rights constitutes irreparable harm” and that the injunction “promotes child safety by guaranteeing fit parents a role in some of the most consequential decisions in their children’s lives.”

This victory marks AFL’s second circuit-level win grounded in the Supreme Court’s decision in Mirabelli v. Bonta. In Doe v. Pine Richland School District, the Third Circuit reversed the district court’s dismissal of AFL’s client’s claims, ruling that the mother had Article III standing to pursue her constitutional claims against a Pennsylvania school district that secretly provided “gender transition teams” to students without parental notification or consent. AFL now holds victories in two federal circuits, establishing that the Constitution protects the fundamental right of parents to be informed about critical decisions in their children’s lives.

“The Ninth Circuit’s decision is a powerful vindication of parental rights,” said Nick Barry, Senior Counsel at AFL. “California cannot use state law to force schoolteachers and administrators into a conspiracy of silence against parents. California’s law, and similar school policies, use state coercion to intentionally interfere with the parent-child relationship and separate a child from their parent. That is wrong and unlawful. The Constitution is clear — parents have the right to know what is happening with their children and make decisions regarding their mental health, and no state law can override that fundamental protection.”

America First Legal will continue to defend parental rights and challenge unconstitutional government overreach at every level of the judicial system.

Read the court’s full ruling here.

Learn more about this case here.

Find more of AFL’s resources for parents here.