A federal appeals court has blocked the implementation of California’s new law banning gay conversion therapy for minors. The first law of its kind in the nation was supposed to have gone into effect Jan. 1 but a three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals agreed to block the law until there is a ruling on whether it is constitutional, reports the Los Angeles Times.
The judges didn’t give a reason for their decision Friday, except noting that the “appellants’ emergency motion for an injunction pending appeal is granted.” Liberty Counsel, a religious group that sued to block the implementation of the law on free-speech grounds, celebrated the decision, saying it was “never routine” for a preliminary injunction to be granted pending appeal, contending it demonstrates how the court believes an appeal has a “likelihood of success.” The two sides have until mid-February to file briefs on the case, points out the San Francisco Chronicle.
