Court Cases and School Privacy: California, Parents, and the Law

In December 2025 a federal judge in California issued a ruling that stopped state rules that told schools to keep a student’s transgender status secret from parents. The judge’s decision was on Dec 22, 2025 and it said teachers could tell parents if a student uses a new name or pronoun at school.

The state asked a higher court to pause the decision, and on Jan 5, 2026 the Ninth Circuit put the ruling on hold while it considers the appeal. The parents and teachers asked the U.S. Supreme Court to act in early January 2026. On Jan 28, 2026 the U.S. Department of Education said it had found problems with California’s policies and opened a formal review.