In Major Win For Trans Students, New Jersey Court Rules Against Forced Outing Policies

The pair of rulings came in an environment where Trump and red states are pushing anti-trans policy across the United States.

Monmouth County Court House - Wikimedia Commons

Yesterday, the New Jersey Superior Court’s Appellate Division issued two unanimous rulings blocking forced outing policies in school districts across Morris and Monmouth counties. In mid-2023, Hanover Township Public Schools in Morris County, Marlboro Township Public Schools in Monmouth County, Middletown Public Schools in Monmouth County, and Manalapan-Englishtown Regional School District in Monmouth County implemented policies mandating the disclosure of a student’s transgender status to their parents. The policies varied in scope—some required notification only if a student formally changed their gender identity at school, while others mandated disclosure if a student merely mentioned being transgender in counseling sessions. Shortly after the policies were enacted, they were challenged in court and met with preliminary injunctions, preventing their enforcement. The appellate court upheld these injunctions yesterday.

The plaintiffs in both cases are New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin and Sundeep Iyer, Director of the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights. The Attorney General’s office represented them in both cases. However, in Platkin et al. v. Middletown Township Board of Education et al., the American Civil Liberties Union and LGBTQ+ rights organization Garden State Equality filed amicus briefs in support of the plaintiffs. In Platkin et al. v. Hanover Township Board of Education et al., no amicus briefs were submitted. The cases were overseen by Judges Robert J. Gilson, Avis Bishop-Thompson, and Lorraine M. Augostini. Gilson was appointed by Democratic Governor Jon Corzine, while Bishop-Thompson and Augostini were appointed by Republican Governor Chris Christie.

In both cases, the school boards argued that a student’s transgender status inherently impacted their mental health, justifying immediate parental notification. However, both the lower court and the appellate court rejected this claim, recognizing that mental distress is not intrinsic to being transgender and that, more often than not, social pressure and discrimination are the primary sources of students’ distress. The school boards also attempted to invoke “parental rights,” arguing that parents have a right to be informed of changes to school records or general developments in their child’s life. The courts disagreed, noting that parents already have the ability to request and review school records and that a student’s gender presentation does not automatically require modifications to official records. Furthermore, the rulings affirmed that students have the right to come out to their parents on their own terms, with nothing in state law mandating schools to override that decision.

In Hanover et al., the judges wrote: “Regarding the findings of irreparable harm, the trial court appropriately found, relying on several studies, that the [forced outing policy] would harm students by discriminating against them based on their gender identity and expression. Additionally, the trial court found that the [forced outing policy] would harm school staff by subjecting them to discipline for failing to abide by its disclosure requirements.”

The judges further reinforced the public interest in preventing discrimination, citing Rodriguez v. Raymours Furniture Co., a case addressing employment discrimination based on disability. They wrote, “The New Jersey Supreme Court has recognized that the ‘eradication of discrimination is a public interest.’” Their ruling continued: “Given the harm faced by students under the [forced outing policy] and strong public interest in preventing discrimination, we discern no abuse of discretion in the trial court's determination that the balance of harms supported granting injunctive relief.”

This decision affirms that policies targeting transgender students are not just harmful but legally indefensible under New Jersey’s civil rights protections.

They present a similar finding in Middletown et al., affirming the Attorney General’s authority to challenge the forced outing policies. The judges state: “The Attorney General has a legitimate interest in preventing discrimination based on gender identity or expression. The Attorney General's action, in enjoining the Boards from affirmatively disclosing a student’s transgender status to their parents, is rationally related to that goal.”

This ruling reinforces that the state has both the legal right and a compelling interest in protecting transgender students from policies that would expose them to harm and discrimination.

In a celebratory press release, ACLU-NJ Legal Director Jeanne LoCicero said, “All students in our state deserve to feel safe, supported, and respected. Policies that target gender-nonconforming students violate anti-discrimination laws and the protections of our State Constitution. Today, the appellate court ruled that the trial judge had the authority to initially block these harmful school board policies and rejected discriminatory arguments that would have put transgender students at risk.”

The decision in this case will protect transgender youth across New Jersey, establishing a legal precedent against forced outing laws. This follows precedent established by California, which enacted the first state law in the country against forced outing. A similar lawsuit in Iowa, Iowa Safe Schools, et al v. Reynolds, awaits further action, but it nevertheless highlights the growing challenges to discriminatory anti-trans laws across the nation.

You can find the rulings here:

• https://www.njcourts.gov/system/files/court-opinions/2025/a0371-23.pdf

• https://www.njcourts.gov/system/files/court-opinions/2025/a0037-23a0046-23a0118-23.pdf

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Editor note: Erin Reed is currently on sick time as she recovers from the flu. Mira Lazine and other contributors will be taking over for big news drops with Erin Reed taking part as her illness permits.