North Carolina's highest court has revived a years-long legal battle between a Charlotte couple and the private school that removed their children from enrollment, ruling 5-2 that the family can pursue claims of fraud, defamation, breach of contract and unfair trade practices against Charlotte Latin School. The Thursday decision reverses lower-court rulings that had thrown out the case entirely, sending it back to the North Carolina Court of Appeals for further proceedings.
Doug and Nicole Turpin sued Charlotte Latin School in 2022 after the school removed their children from enrollment, according to WRAL. The couple alleged that school leaders engaged in cancel culture against their beliefs and unfairly targeted their children in retaliation, disputing the school's handling of Covid-era mask requirements and its actions acknowledging the Black Lives Matter movement. Their dispute traces back to late 2020, when they helped form Refocus Latin, a group of roughly 60 Charlotte Latin parents who organized to challenge curriculum changes, staff diversity training and reading materials introduced after the murder of George Floyd, according to reporting cited in court filings.
What the Parents Allege
According to court filings cited by Carolina Journal, the parents claimed Charlotte Latin's updated curriculum taught their sixth-grade child that “Republicans are white supremacists” and required young students to read books covering sexuality and gender identity that the parents deemed age-inappropriate. The fraud claim now cleared for trial centers on allegations that school administrators gave parents explicit “no blowback” assurances against retaliation before inviting them to share curriculum concerns, only to expel their children shortly after, per reporting from Reason Magazine.
The defamation claim stems from allegations that Head of School Chuck Baldecchi mischaracterized a parent presentation to others, claiming the parents asserted that minority students and faculty were admitted or hired based on race rather than merit, according to court records reviewed by FindLaw. Chris Edwards, who represented the Turpins during oral arguments, said a jury should decide disputes over each side's alleged reputational harm.
A Four-Year Path Through the Courts
A Mecklenburg County judge found the Turpin family failed to make valid legal claims, and the North Carolina Court of Appeals upheld that dismissal in a 2-1 decision in January 2024, per Justia Law's account of the case history. The state Supreme Court's Thursday ruling held that some of the Turpins' allegations could support a valid lawsuit if true and properly challenged, sending the case back down rather than resolving it outright.
Justice Richard Dietz, writing separately, described the 60 pages of allegations as occasionally resembling a press release more than a legal filing, and wrote that many portions of the Turpins' complaint asserted claims or legal theories that were meritless as a matter of law. The court's ruling broke along party lines, with Republican justices siding with the Turpins and Democratic justices opposing them.
Dissent Warns of Broader Fallout
Justice Allison Riggs, in dissent, wrote that the decision risks exposing every private school in North Carolina to lawsuits and could enable defamation lawsuits against many individuals and groups. Riggs also argued that the majority gave credence to arguments that were wholly without merit and contrary to legal precedent, warning the decision could chill public discourse and bring disputes into court that should be settled through public conversations.
Jennifer Van Zant, who represented Charlotte Latin School during 2025 oral arguments, said allowing a trial could create what she called a potential tort minefield for private schools and other businesses. She warned that private schools could become vanilla, one-size-fits-all experiences if they faced tort liability for exercising contractual rights, and said a ruling for the Turpins would encourage more parents to sue private schools and reduce the quality parents expect. Throughout the appeal, Charlotte Latin cited its standard enrollment contract clause requiring a “positive, collaborative working relationship,” which reserves the school's right to terminate enrollment if parent conduct renders that relationship impossible, according to Carolina Journal.
Political Lines Drawn Early
The case drew heavy outside political engagement well before Thursday's ruling. In May 2025, U.S. Representatives Richard Hudson and Pat Harrigan, alongside 11 Republican members of the North Carolina General Assembly, filed an amicus brief supporting the Turpin family and arguing against broad private school immunity for retaliatory expulsions, per Carolina Journal. More than a dozen Republican politicians ultimately urged a ruling in favor of the Turpins, while the family has donated tens of thousands of dollars to Republican politicians and causes.
Seven local North Carolina chapters of Moms for Liberty, along with advocacy organizations including Color Us United and the New Tolerance Campaign, submitted amicus briefs urging the high court to protect parents who challenge private school curricula from retaliation. On the other side, private education umbrella groups including the North Carolina Association of Independent Schools and the Southern Association of Independent Schools filed amicus briefs supporting Charlotte Latin, arguing private schools require contractual freedom to preserve institutional culture. Groups supporting the school also included the Catholic Church, according to WRAL's reporting.
The case now returns to the North Carolina Court of Appeals, where the Turpins will have the chance to press their narrowed set of claims. If a jury eventually rules in their favor, the Turpins' claims could produce a financial windfall for the family, and the case itself could pave the way for more lawsuits against private schools over enrollment decisions — as well as against other private businesses that cut customers loose, a prospect both sides in the dispute are watching closely.
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