Washington stops enforcing counseling ban against Christian therapist

Washington state officials have agreed not to enforce a counseling ban against a Christian therapist as his court case moves forward.

The preliminary order protects Brian Tingley, a licensed marriage and family therapist in the Tacoma area. U.S. District Judge Tiffany Cartwright signed it on Aug. 13.

Tingley will not have to answer complaints accusing him of breaking the ban through talk-only therapy.

The order only applies to Tingley. It doesn’t stop Washington from enforcing the law against other counselors, and his lawsuit remains open.

Tingley has been a counselor for over 20 years. His Christian faith shapes his views on sexual matters.

Some parents bring their children to Tingley because they want a counselor who shares their Christian worldview. Tingley says he only uses talk therapy. His clients choose the goals they want to pursue.

Some minors want help becoming more comfortable with their anatomical sex. Others want to address the unwanted same-sex attraction they feel. Washington’s law banned Tingley from helping those clients.

“We’re pleased Washington has agreed that Mr. Tingley should be free to speak,” Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Johannes Widmalm-Delphonse said. “It will allow young people to get the help they desperately need while his case proceeds.”

Alliance Defending Freedom represents Tingley.

Washington passed its ban on so-called “conversion therapy” in 2018.

State law bars licensed counselors from trying to change a minor’s sexual orientation or gender identity. It also covers efforts to change sexual behavior or so-called gender expression. Counselors cannot try to reduce a minor’s same-sex attraction.

However, the law permits counseling affirming a minor’s stated gender identity. Additionally, it allows talks that help a child explore their transgender identity as long as the counselor does not try to change it.

The state can fine a therapist up to $5,000, require the counselor to take more training and even suspend or revoke a counselor’s license.

The law has an exemption for unlicensed counselors who work under a church or other religious group. However, the carveout doesn’t protect licensed counselors such as Tingley.

Tingley sued Washington in 2021. He said the state was deciding which views counselors could share during private talks with clients.

A federal district court dismissed his case. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling in 2022. The appeals court treated the counseling ban as a rule governing professional conduct, not a limit on free speech.

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Tingley’s appeal in 2023. Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Clarence Thomas wanted the court to take the case.

However, the legal situation changed earlier this year.

As Heartlander News reported in March, the Supreme Court ruled 8-1 in favor of Colorado Christian counselor Kaley Chiles in a similar case.

The court found Colorado’s ban regulated speech based on viewpoint when applied to Chiles’ talk therapy. It ordered lower courts to review the law under the toughest test courts use for limits on speech.

“Her speech does not become ‘conduct’ just because a government says so or because it may be described as a ‘treatment’ or ‘therapeutic modality,’” Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote for the court.

Tingley’s lawsuit had already been dismissed and closed. After the Supreme Court rejected the legal reasoning used to dismiss it, Tingley asked Cartwright to reopen the case.

Cartwright granted his request July 30, putting his free speech claim back before the court. Washington then agreed not to enforce the counseling ban against Tingley while the court decides this claim.

The Chiles ruling has caused other governments to revisit similar bans. Heartlander News reported in May that Kansas City repealed its local ban.