The U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has granted a preliminary injunction in favor of a transgender high school student in Berkeley County, South Carolina, temporarily blocking enforcement of the state’s law restricting restroom use in public schools. The ruling, issued August 13, 2025, means the student, identified in court documents as “John Doe,” may use the boys’ restroom while his appeal proceeds.
The injunction applies to the South Carolina Board of Education, the Department of Education, and the Berkeley County School District. The Fourth Circuit also denied a motion to dismiss the case, allowing Doe’s challenge to move forward. In a statement, the school district confirmed it is reviewing the court’s order and “assessing the legal implications” for district policy.
The South Carolina law at the heart of the dispute requires public school students to use restrooms that match their sex assigned at birth. Doe’s attorneys argue that the policy violates Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Context in National Case Law
This case follows a series of high-profile legal battles over transgender students’ restroom rights. In G.G. v. Gloucester County School Board (Virginia), also within the Fourth Circuit, the appeals court sided with transgender student Gavin Grimm in 2020, holding that denying him access to the boys’ restroom was discriminatory under Title IX. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the school board’s appeal, letting the ruling stand.
In Maine, Doe v. Regional School Unit 26 set an early precedent in 2014 when the state’s highest court ruled that a transgender girl must be allowed to use the girls’ restroom under the Maine Human Rights Act.
Not all federal courts have ruled the same way. In Adams v. School Board of St. Johns County (Florida), the Eleventh Circuit reversed a lower court’s decision and upheld the district’s policy requiring restroom use based on biological sex. This split among circuits increases the possibility that the U.S. Supreme Court could eventually take up the issue.
Broader Implications
Because the Fourth Circuit has jurisdiction over South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, and Maryland, this injunction could influence how other school districts in the region approach restroom access policies. While the order is temporary and applies only to this student, it signals how the court may lean when the full appeal is decided.
The case may also gain heightened national attention because U.S. Representative Nancy Mace, a Republican who has positioned herself as a vocal opponent of transgender rights, is running for South Carolina governor in 2026. Any high-profile rulings on transgender issues within the state are likely to become part of the political conversation, particularly if they intersect with Mace’s campaign messaging.
What Comes Next
The case will proceed with full briefing and potential oral arguments before the Fourth Circuit. A final decision could either affirm the injunction and set binding precedent in the circuit or reverse it and reinstate the restrictions.
For now, the injunction provides immediate relief to the student, preserving his ability to participate in daily school life without fear of discipline or exclusion, an outcome his lawyers describe as essential to his dignity and education.
