Case file
The Louis D. Brandeis Center Coalition to Combat Anti-Semitism, Inc., et al. v. State of California, State Board of Education, California Department of Education, and Tony Thurmond
Statewide lawsuit by the Louis D. Brandeis Center and StandWithUs alleging California, its Board of Education, the Department of Education, and Superintendent Tony Thurmond allowed pervasive anti-Semitic harassment of Jewish students and anti-Israel classroom propaganda in K-12 public schools. Complaint and filings, updated as documents become available.
Case information
- Case number
- Los Angeles Superior Court (filed Feb. 26, 2026)
- Court
- Superior Court of the State of California, County of Los Angeles
- Date filed
- February 26, 2026
- Nature of suit
- Civil Rights — California constitutional equal protection and free exercise
- Cause
- California Constitution, art. I, §§ 4 and 7 — declaratory, injunctive, and other equitable relief
- Status
- Open — filed February 26, 2026
Parties
Plaintiffs
- The Louis D. Brandeis Center Coalition to Combat Anti-Semitism, Inc.
- Melissa Alexander, on behalf of herself and her minor child
- Ivy Chesser, on behalf of herself and her son Y.Z.
- Ilana Pearlman, on behalf of herself and her minor children
- Dawn and Michael Rosenthal, on behalf of themselves and their minor child
- John and Jane Smith, on behalf of themselves and their minor child
Defendants
- State of California
- California State Board of Education
- California Department of Education
- Tony Thurmond, in his official capacity as State Superintendent of Public Instruction
- ROES 1-10
Counsel for plaintiffs
- L. Rachel Lerman — The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, Washington, D.C.
- Michael A. Sherman — Law Office of Michael A. Sherman, Sherman Oaks
Docket
Filings are posted here as they become available. Docket current through September 1, 2026.
| # | Date | Proceeding |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | February 26, 2026 | COMPLAINT FOR DECLARATORY RELIEF, INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER EQUITABLE RELIEF filed against the State of California, the State Board of Education, the California Department of Education, and State Superintendent Tony Thurmond, alleging the state failed to protect Jewish students from pervasive harassment and permitted anti-Semitic instructional material in districts including Los Angeles, Berkeley, Oakland, Santa Clara, San Francisco, Campbell Union, Fremont, and Etiwanda. |
| — | February 26, 2026 | Statements from Jewish parents released with the filing, describing the incidents in their children's schools and the outcome of their district complaints. |
Docket text is summarized from the public court record. Allegations in filings are not findings, and no court has determined whether any of them are true.
