Charter school lawsuits in 2025 and 2026 are testing whether these schools can exist at all under some state constitutions, whether religious groups can run them, and how much control school districts keep over facilities, enrollment, and renewals. State supreme courts in Kentucky and West Virginia have struck down or blocked charter programs on constitutional grounds. A federal case in Tennessee is pushing the religious charter question the U.S. Supreme Court left unresolved. And district-versus-charter disputes over buildings, seats, and money are producing active litigation from California to Connecticut.
State Constitutional Challenges Reshaping Charter Programs
Kentucky Supreme Court Strikes Down the 2022 Charter Law
On February 19, 2026, the Kentucky Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the state’s 2022 charter school law was unconstitutional. The 7-0 opinion, authored by Justice Michelle Keller, held that House Bill 9 violated the Kentucky Constitution’s requirement that the state provide for “an efficient system of common schools.”1Louisville Public Media. Kentucky Supreme Court Unanimously Strikes Down Charter School Funding Law
The court found that charter schools as structured under HB 9 did not qualify as “common schools” because they operated independently, used admission lotteries, capped enrollment, and answered to non-elected authorizers rather than elected school boards. The General Assembly, the justices concluded, could not direct public tax dollars to those institutions without voter approval.2WKYT. Kentucky Supreme Court Strikes Down Charter School Funding Law Chief Justice Debra Lambert, joined by Justice Kelly Thompson, wrote separately to say the only constitutional path forward would be a voter-approved amendment.3Kentucky Lantern. KY Supreme Court Unanimously Strikes Down Republican Lawmakers’ 2022 Charter School Law Kentucky voters rejected such an amendment in 2024.1Louisville Public Media. Kentucky Supreme Court Unanimously Strikes Down Charter School Funding Law
The suit was brought by the Council for Better Education, a coalition of school districts, and the Kentucky Board of Education against the state Attorney General’s office. Legal observers place the ruling within a broader wave of state constitutional challenges to school-choice programs, with courts in South Carolina, Ohio, Utah, Wyoming, Tennessee, and Montana also weighing similar questions.4State Court Report. School Funding Case Shows Challenges Upholding Certain Rights Court
West Virginia: Program Blocked, Then Allowed to Continue on Appeal
In December 2025, Eighth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Jennifer Bailey issued a permanent injunction against West Virginia’s charter school program. She ruled that charter schools are “independent free school organizations” created through House Bill 2012 in 2021 without the consent of a majority of affected county voters that Article 12, Section 10 of the state constitution requires.5The Intelligencer. Judge: Creation of Charter Schools Violates West Virginia Constitution
The order barred the Professional Charter School Board from authorizing new charters without a special election, but did not immediately close existing schools.6News and Sentinel. Professional Charter School Board Stays Mum on Court Ruling Requiring County Referendums On January 29, 2026, the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals stayed the injunction, letting operations continue while it hears the case. Justice Wooton dissented from the stay.7West Virginia Public Broadcasting. Supreme Court Says New Charter Schools Can Open in W.Va. A final ruling is expected after June 2026.8News and Sentinel. W.Va. Professional Charter School Board Appeals Ruling to State Supreme Court
Religious Charter Schools After the St. Isidore Deadlock
Whether a religious organization can run a publicly funded charter school reached the U.S. Supreme Court in May 2025 in Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board v. Drummond. The Court split 4-4 with Justice Amy Coney Barrett recused, and its per curiam decision affirmed the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s ruling blocking St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School without setting national precedent.9Congress.gov. Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board v. Drummond The ACLU said the outcome affirmed that “a religious school can’t be a public school and a public school can’t be religious.”10ACLU. Supreme Court Affirms Oklahoma Supreme Court Ruling Rejecting Nation’s First Religious Public Charter School
Because the underlying constitutional question was left open, new litigation followed. In November 2025, the Wilberforce Academy of Knoxville sued in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, arguing that Tennessee’s ban on religiously affiliated charter schools violates the First Amendment’s Free Exercise Clause and the Fourteenth Amendment. The academy notes that the state simultaneously funds religious schools through the Education Freedom Scholarship Program voucher.11The 74. Christian School Sues Knox County School Board Over Charter School Rules
Six taxpayers represented by the ACLU intervened as defendants alongside the Knox County Board of Education, and the court granted intervention on January 30, 2026.12ACLU. Wilberforce Academy of Knoxville v. Knox County Board of Education A federal judge denied Wilberforce’s request for a preliminary injunction, and trial is set for January 2027. Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti declined to intervene, despite issuing a November 2025 opinion questioning the constitutionality of the state’s ban.13Chalkbeat. Religious Charter School Lawsuit Jonathan Skrmetti
District Versus Charter: Facilities, Seats, and Funding
Los Angeles: Facilities Policy Struck Down
The California Charter Schools Association sued Los Angeles Unified over a February 2024 policy telling administrators to “avoid” housing charter schools at 346 district sites, including Priority and community schools.14CalMatters. California’s Charter School War In June 2025, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Stephen Goorvitch ruled the policy unlawful under Proposition 39, the 2000 ballot measure requiring districts to provide charter schools with adequate facilities. “Proposition 39 does not allow the District to categorically prioritize district schools over charter school facilities,” he wrote.15LAist. LAUSD Charter Co-Location Policy Violates State Law, Judge Rules An LAUSD spokesperson described the ruling as narrow, saying the court denied the charter association’s claims “apart from two lines in the policy.”16Washington Examiner. Judge: LA School District Broke Law on Charter School Changes in allocations were not expected until the 2026-27 school year.17EdSource. LAUSD Charter School Co-Location Ruling
New York: Teachers Union Sues Over Long Island Approvals
On January 27, 2026, the New York State United Teachers filed two lawsuits in Albany County State Supreme Court seeking to overturn approval of three Academy Charter School network schools in Brentwood and Central Islip.18New York Post. NY Teachers Union Sues to Block Long Island Charter Schools The SUNY Board of Trustees had approved the applications on January 22, 2026, after the state Board of Regents previously rejected them. NYSUT president Melinda Person alleged that the SUNY Charter Schools Institute “repeatedly ignored state law by dismissing community voices and overriding education experts.”19Newsday. Central Islip Brentwood Charter Schools Lawsuit Academy founder Barrington Goldson called the lawsuits “wholly without merit.” The dispute reflects a structural tension in New York’s dual authorization system, where SUNY can approve charters the Board of Regents opposes.
Philadelphia: Renewal Terms Challenged
In May 2026, Philadelphia Charters for Excellence sued the School District of Philadelphia and its Board in the Court of Common Pleas, alleging that the district’s charter renewal process is “coercive and exploitative.” The complaint focuses on enrollment caps and “surrender clauses” that require schools to give up their charters if they miss performance targets.20Chalkbeat. Charter School Group Sues District Over Renewal Process
PCE argues that Pennsylvania law gives authorizers only three options at renewal: approve, deny, or revoke. The district, according to the complaint, has invented a fourth by threatening denial unless schools sign new agreements containing enrollment limits that a 2008 amendment prohibits districts from imposing unilaterally.21Philadelphia Charters for Excellence. PCE Files Lawsuit for School District A 2023 district-commissioned investigation found that surrender clauses were applied more frequently to minority-led charter schools.22Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia School District Charter Requirements Enrollment Performance Board members said in a joint statement that they use tools available under the law to “authorize, evaluate, and hold charter schools accountable.”20Chalkbeat. Charter School Group Sues District Over Renewal Process
Missouri: Columbia Challenges Expansion Law
In December 2025, Columbia Public Schools sued in Cole County to challenge a 2024 law (Senate Bill 727) that allows charter schools to expand into Boone County. The district argues the law is an unconstitutional “local or special law” that uses a population bracket of 150,000 to 200,000 residents to target a single county.23Missouri Independent. Columbia Schools Sue to Block Law Expanding Reach of Missouri Charter Schools Frontier Schools, sponsored by Saint Louis University, applied to open a Columbia campus.24KBIA. Columbia Public Schools Sues Missouri Over Charter Schools Expanding Into Boone County The Missouri State Board of Education approved the application on April 14, 2026, despite the pending challenge. Superintendent Jeff Klein has estimated the district would lose about $4 million in the first year, rising to $9 million annually at full enrollment.
Connecticut: Approved but Never Funded
Capital Preparatory Charter School filed suit in December 2025 challenging a Connecticut Board of Education ruling that the legislature, not the Board, holds authority over which charter schools receive funding. The school received the highest application score when the Board granted it an initial certificate of approval for a Middletown campus in March 2023, but funding included in a 2023 budget draft was removed before final passage.25CT Mirror. Capital Prep Sues Over CT Charter School Funding Process Since 2015, Connecticut has required legislative approval for charter school funding.26CT Examiner. Capital Prep Sues State Board of Ed for Failing to Fund Middletown Charter School A spokesperson for Governor Ned Lamont’s office called the school’s claims “baseless and concerning.”
Fraud and Financial Accountability Cases
A separate track of charter litigation concerns financial misconduct. In New Jersey, the Office of the State Comptroller released a preliminary report on January 12, 2026, finding that College Achieve Greater Asbury Park Charter School violated public contracting laws and anti-nepotism rules, including payments to a company owned by the executive director’s brother-in-law without competitive bidding. Between 2016 and 2023, the school’s private management company, CAPS Inc., received $57 million in public funds, and the organization’s CEO earned $795,515 in total compensation for the fiscal year ending in 2023.27NJ Office of the State Comptroller. College Achieve Greater Asbury Park Charter School Investigation
Both the executive director and the school principal invoked their Fifth Amendment rights when subpoenaed. CAPS Inc. defied a court order to produce documents and filed two Superior Court lawsuits to block the investigation. In May 2026, the Appellate Division heard oral arguments on those challenges, with a decision pending.28Jersey Vindicator. Appeals Court Weighs Limits of Comptroller’s Subpoena Powers in Charter School Case No criminal charges have been filed and no charter revocation has been initiated.27NJ Office of the State Comptroller. College Achieve Greater Asbury Park Charter School Investigation
California has faced its own reckoning. Operators of the A3 Education network allegedly inflated enrollment by more than $400 million by registering children in summer athletic programs and then enrolling them in online schools without parental knowledge. A June 2024 state audit concluded that Highlands Community Charter and Technical Schools received more than $180 million in ineligible funds by claiming nearly 14,000 students while employing unqualified teachers and maintaining nonexistent attendance records. The legislature responded with Senate Bill 414, introduced by Senator Angelique Ashby, which creates an independent Office of the Inspector General with subpoena authority over fraud investigations at all public schools, tightens enrollment verification and auditing, and extends a moratorium on new non-classroom-based charter petitions through July 2026.29EdSource. California Lawmakers Pass Charter School Bill
What Charter Schools Can and Cannot Take to Court
Procedural rulings shape which charter school disputes ever reach a judge. New York appellate courts have held that charter schools generally have no right to judicial review of non-renewal decisions, ruling that charters are granted for fixed terms and do not confer a constitutionally protected property interest in renewal.30NYC Charter School Center. Out of Options: No Judicial Review of Charter School Non-Renewals In Pennsylvania, an April 2026 Commonwealth Court ruling in a case involving Franklin Towne Charter High School reinforced that charter schools must exhaust administrative remedies before seeking judicial relief, which may complicate how Philadelphia charters challenge the district’s renewal terms in court.31Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania. Franklin Towne Charter High School v. The School District of Philadelphia For charter operators and the districts that authorize them, the legal landscape is now as much about process as substance.