SAN DIEGO, CA – In a major victory for parental rights and religious liberty, U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez has certified a class action lawsuit representing all California parents and teachers affected by school district policies that conceal children’s gender transitions from their families, referred to in the Thomas More Society lawsuit as “Parental Exclusion Policies.”

The October 15 court order in Mirabelli v. Olson means the case will now proceed on behalf of more than 300,000 California public school teachers and the parents of more than 5 million California public school students. What started as a challenge by two courageous teachers in the Escondido Union School District is now becoming one of the largest civil rights class actions in state history.  

In the order, Judge Benitez states: “Injunctive relief on behalf of the proposed class would achieve systemic changes to the California Department of Education that would obviate the need for future lawsuits seeking similar relief.”

The class certification comes at a critical juncture, arriving just one month before a scheduled summary judgment hearing on November 17, 2025, where Judge Benitez will consider whether to rule definitively that California’s gender secrecy policies violate parents’ and teachers’ constitutional rights.

“This is a watershed moment for parental rights and religious freedom in education,” said Paul M. Jonna, Special Counsel for Thomas More Society and Partner at LiMandri & Jonna LLP. “Judge Benitez has recognized that California’s gender secrecy policies affect millions of families and teachers, and that everyone impacted deserves to have the fundamental constitutional issues squarely resolved. With this class action certified, every affected parent and teacher in California now has a voice in court. Our November 17 hearing could finally provide clarity and accountability on these gender secrecy policies that demand secrecy and punish honesty.”

Parental Exclusion Policies are state-mandated directives that require teachers to hide information about students’ gender identity from parents, even when children are presenting publicly as the opposite-sex at school and using opposite-sex facilities. These policies stem from directives issued by the California Department of Education and interpretations by the California Attorney General that treat disclosure of such information to parents as a violation of student privacy rights.

“Parents have a fundamental right, recognized by the Supreme Court for over a century, to direct their children’s educational and moral upbringing,” said Peter Breen, Executive Vice President and Head of Litigation at Thomas More Society. “California’s Department of Education and school districts cannot override that right by keeping parents in the dark about major issues and developments in their child’s life. Especially on something as sensitive and serious as gender-related confusion. Parents should never be treated as strangers in their own children’s lives.”  

The class certification positions the November 17 hearing to potentially deliver a final ruling that would protect all California parents’ rights to know what’s happening with their children at school and all teachers’ rights to communicate honestly, in line with their faith, with parents without fear of punishment.

The summary judgment hearing will determine whether Judge Benitez rules that California's policies violate parents’ First and Fourteenth Amendment rights to direct their children’s upbringing and teachers’ First Amendment free speech and religious freedom rights.