Perkins et al. v. State (HB 121)

HB 121, which took effect on March 27, 2025, is a draconian law that singles out transgender and intersex people for dehumanizing and discriminatory treatment. It bars transgender people from using public restrooms, changing rooms, and sleeping quarters that correspond to their gender identity in a sweeping range of public spaces—including offices, libraries, universities, state parks, and hospitals. HB 121 also imposes a restrictive binary definition of “sex” which fails to recognize intersex people, who are born with a combination of male and female sex traits. As a result, under HB 121, intersex people apparently cannot use regulated sex-separated facilities at all. What is more, HB 121 subjects regulated entities to potentially severe legal liability: any person who “encounter[s] another individual of the opposite sex” in a restroom or changing room—including a transgender individual using a facility consistent with their gender identity—can sue the entity where the encounter took place.

The ACLU’s State Supreme Court Initiative, along with the ACLU of Montana and Legal Voice, have brought suit against the State of Montana, Governor Gianforte, and Attorney General Knudsen on behalf of a group of transgender and intersex plaintiffs. Each of the plaintiffs is a Montanan who—like any other Montanan—needs access to public buildings and spaces to work, go to school, seek healthcare, and enjoy recreation, among other things. But, under HB 121, they would not be allowed access to such spaces on equal terms with everyone else. Because they are denied access to restrooms and other sex-separated facilities, the plaintiffs and other transgender and intersex people may not be able to continue working, studying, or participating in public life.

Our lawsuit argues that the Montana Constitution prohibits this discrimination. The Montana Constitution provides robust protections for individual rights and liberties that in some respects exceeds the protections afforded by the U.S. Constitution. We allege that HB 121 violates Montana’s constitutional guarantees of equal protection under the law, privacy, and due process, as well as every Montanan’s constitutional right to pursue life’s basic necessities. At this initial stage of the case, we are asking the Court to enter a preliminary injunction preventing the State from enforcing HB 121 while litigation is ongoing because of the immediate and irreparable harm that the law would inflict on transgender and intersex people.