Nathan v. Alamo Heights ISD

── Nathan v. Alamo Heights ISD ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Date: April 21, 2026 Category: Private Civil Federal Case: 25-50695 Document: 219-1 Page: 1 Date Filed: 04/21/2026 United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit ____________ FILED April 21, 2026 No. 25-50695 Lyle W. Cayce ____________ Clerk Mara Nathan, Rabbi, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor child, M.N.; Virginia Galaviz Eisenberg, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor child, R.E.; Ron Eisenberg, on behalf of himself and on behalf of his minor child, R.E.; Seth Ettinger, Cantor, on behalf of himself and on behalf of his minor child, R.E.; Sarah Ettinger, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor child, R.E.; Elizabeth Lemaster, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor children, K.L. & L.L.; Carah Helwig, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor children, J.P. & T.P.; Alyssa Martin, on behalf of herself and on behalf on her minor child, H.B.M.; Cody Barker, on behalf of himself and on behalf of his minor child, H.B.M.; Lauren Erwin, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor child, M.E.; Rebekah Lowe, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor children, E.R.L. & E.M.L.; Theodore Lowe, on behalf of himself and on behalf of his minor children, E.R.L. & E.M.L.; Marissa Norden, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor children, E.N. & A.N.; Wiley Norden, on behalf of himself and on behalf of his minor children, E.N. & A.N.; Joshua Fixler, Rabbi, on behalf of himself and on behalf on his minor children, D.F., E.F., & F.F.; Cynthia Mood, Reverend, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor children, L.M. & C.M.; Cheryl Rebecca Smith, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor child, L.P.J.; Arvind Chandrakantan, on behalf of himself and on behalf of his minor children, V.C., M.C. & A.C.; Allison Fitzpatrick, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor children, C.F. & H.F.; Mara Richards Bim, on behalf of herself and on behalf of her minor child, H.B., Plaintiffs—Appellees, versus Case: 25-50695 Document: 219-1 Page: 2 Date Filed: 04/21/2026 Alamo Heights Independent School District; North East Independent School District; Lackland Independent School District; Northside Independent School District; Lake Travis Independent School District; Dripping Springs Independent School District; Fort Bend Independent School District; Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District; Plano Independent School District, Defendants—Appellants. ______________________________ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas USDC No. 5:25-CV-756 ______________________________ Before Elrod, Chief Judge, and Jones, Smith, Stewart, Richman, Southwick, Haynes, Graves, Higginson, Willett, Ho, Duncan, Engelhardt, Oldham, Wilson, Douglas, and Ramirez, Circuit Judges. Stuart Kyle Duncan, Circuit Judge, joined by Elrod, Chief Judge, and Jones, Smith, Willett, Ho, Engelhardt, Oldham, and Wilson, Circuit Judges:* Introduction A Texas law (S.B. 10) requires public schools to display a copy of the Ten Commandments in classrooms. We consider whether that law violates the Establishment or Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment. Plaintiffs are Texans of various religious backgrounds with minor schoolchildren. They sue on two grounds. First, t