U.S. Supreme Court urged to take up Maine parental rights case

(The Center Square) — A conservative group is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the case of a Maine mother who says her 13-year-old daughter was “secretly” advised by a school social worker to begin gender transitioning.

In a petition to the high court, attorneys for the Arizona-based Goldwater Institute ask justices to consider a lawsuit filed by Amber Lavigne, who claims the Great Salt Bay Community School a guidance counselor encouraged her 13-year-old to wear a chest binder and use a different name and pronouns at school, without consulting her. Federal courts previously rejected her 2023 lawsuit.

However, Goldwater’s attorneys argued that the case also presents an opportunity for the high court to provide “uniform guidance” on the legality of school gender-identity policies nationwide, an issue the federal courts have been grappling with for years. They ask justi...