Montana State Court Temporarily Blocks Law Maintaining Single-Sex Bathrooms and Other Spaces

April 3, 2025

I recently came across a story about a Montana state court temporarily blocking a state law that protects single-sex spaces in the state of Montana.

The law is HB 121, and the abbreviated title is “Provide privacy in certain restrooms, changing rooms, and sleeping quarters.” I haven’t read the bill text carefully, but a quick skim suggests that it’s a perfectly sensible piece of legislation. It passed on March 27, was signed by the governor on the same day, and took effect immediately.

However, the ACLU of Montana filed suit that day, arguing that “If allowed to take effect, the Act would make it difficult, if not impossible, for transgender and intersex Montanans to participate in public life—to work, attend school, go to the courthouse or the Motor Vehicle Division, or visit a library or state park. And the restrictions imposed by the Act are not limited to government buildings. They sweep far more broadly, applying also to buildings leased from the government and spaces that provide critical services to the public, such as domestic violence shelters, warming shelters, interstate rest stops, and even hospitals. The Act therefore obstructs transgender and intersex Montanans’ ability to seek refuge from domestic abuse and to access healthcare that could be the difference between life and death.”

The complaint asserts claims of equal protection violations, privacy violations, violations of the right to pursue life’s basic necessities, and due process violations (all under the Montana State Constitution). On Wednesday, a state judge found “at least serious questions going to the merits of” all of the plaintiffs’ claims. The judge found further that the plaintiffs showed that they were likely to suffer irreparable harm in the absence of an order blocking the law and that blocking the law is right for the “balancing of the equities” and the public interest. The court temporarily blocked the law from taking effect until the next hearing, scheduled for April 21.

My question is, why is this all happening in state court? Are the proponents of “gender identity” becoming afraid of the federal judiciary? Read on to learn more.

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