Burleigh County Judge to decide if transgender healthcare ban will be temporarily paused

(Bismarck, ND) -- A Burleigh County judge is considering granting a temporary restraining order for a law that bans gender-affirming care to transgender minors in North Dakota.

The order would allow medical professionals to resume care to transgender and non-binary teens until an injunction hearing, where lawyers will argue whether to stop the law, while the case plays out in court. Plaintiffs are challenging a law that resulted from House Bill 1254, which bans sex reassignment surgeries and hormone treatments for children, punishable with up to a year in prison and $3,000 in fines.

“We’re confident we successfully presented the real constitutional issues that need to be resolved by the court and made clear the harm this law is causing in the lives of the kids and families we represent,” said Brittany Stewart, Gender Justice, lead attorney for the families and doctor. “We’re hopeful the judge will issue a temporary restraining order blocking the law’s enforcement while this case proceeds.”