On Tuesday, February 25, 2025, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Massachusetts’ Ludlow Public Schools did not infringe upon parents’ rights with a policy that required students’ consent to notify their parents if they preferred using a different name or pronouns at school. The decision in Foote v. Ludlow School Committee upholds a district court’s dismissal of the case,
The lawsuit brought by parents Stephen Foote and Marissa Silvestri claimed the district’s policy violated their constitutional rights to direct the upbringing of their children under the 14th Amendment. In their 46-page decision, the judges wrote that the parents failed to make the case that the school district violated their right to direct medical treatment for their child by providing treatment without their knowledge or consent.
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