Fifth Circuit Upholds Louisiana Law Requiring Ten Commandments Displays in Classrooms

*Research and contributions to this article were made by Adams & Reese Law Clerk, Maryam Diaab, law student at the Loyola University New Orleans College of Law (Class of 2026).

Louisiana public school classrooms may soon be required to post the Ten Commandments, according to a new law and its resulting courtroom battles. During the 2024 legislative session, the Louisiana legislature passed HB 71, which required the display of the Ten Commandments in schools. A group of nine families sued. On June 20, 2025, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit enjoined the Orleans, East Baton Rouge, St. Tammany, Livingston, and Vernon Parish school districts from implementing the law. On Friday, February 20, 2026, the Fifth Circuit issued an en banc decision lifting the preliminary injunction.  

Possible Legal Next Steps

The ruling does not prevent future challenges once the statute is implemented. There is every indication that the plaintiffs are committed to appealing this ruling, as the ACLU has stated that they are “exploring all legal pathways forward to continue the fight against this unconstitutional law.”

Your Next Steps

This most recent court decision means that the Louisiana public schools previously enjoined from implementing the law - Orleans, St. Tammany, Livingston, East Baton Rouge, and Vernon - must immediately post the Ten Commandments in every classroom.  

What to Post

While the law provides school boards within the state with considerable discretion relating to the “nature of the display,” the Office of the Attorney General has provided the following minimum requirements: 

1. A school should select, and display at its discretion, one of the four displays below, provided that the displays themselves or funding for the displays are donated, such that any given display may appear in any given classroom.

2. Each display should be between the statutory minimum size of 11 inches by 14 inches and the maximum size of 18 inches by 24 inches.

3. A school should place its displays on any classroom wall other than behind the teacher’s desk, podium, or location from which a teacher ordinarily delivers instruction.

Next Steps for Impacted Schools

If your school has been provided with donated posters or funds to purchase such posters and was previously enjoined from implementing the law requiring their posting, you must immediately post the Ten Commandments to comply with H.B. 71. Schools may solicit donations, but are not required to do so. If a school does not post the displays because no donated resources are available, the statute does not specify any penalty.

Display Options 

These poster displays, as referenced above, have been provided by the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office. The law does not require a public-school governing authority to spend its funds to purchase these displays. To fund the displays free of charge, the school's public governing authority must either accept donated funds to purchase the displays or accept donated displays.

The posters are from the Attorney General’s Guidance regarding this law.
State of Louisiana, Office of Attorney General, Guidance Regarding Implementation of H.B. 71, Act 676 (Jan. 2, 2025) https://aglizmurrill.com/Page/HB71 the Attorney General.