NZ High Court To Test Legality Of Puberty‑Blocker Regulations
A High Court judicial review has been set down for early May to determine whether the Government’s new restrictions on puberty blockers for young people are lawful.
This case targets the Medicines (Restriction on Prescribing Gonadotropin‑releasing Hormone Analogues) Amendment Regulations 2025, which were drafted to block new prescriptions of puberty blockers for children and adolescents diagnosed with gender dysphoria or gender incongruence.
The regulations were due to come into force on 19 December but have been effectively neutralised since an urgent court challenge late last year by the Professional Association for Transgender Healthcare Aotearoa (PATHA).
The Ministry of Health announcement, (last updated 23 December 2025), states “On 17 December 2025, the High Court made a declaration that the Crown should take no steps to enforce the regulations pending the result of a full judicial review. However, it’s important to note that the regulations have not been set aside and are in force from 19 December 2025.
“The Ministry of Health, as the enforcement agency of the Medicines Act 1981, will abide by the order set out by the Court and will not pursue enforcement of the regulations. This will be upheld until the conclusion of the substantive Judicial Review.”
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Interim order keeps ban on ice
PATHA filed proceedings late last year seeking to prevent the regulations from taking effect. Two days before the ban was scheduled to start, a High Court judge granted interim relief. RNZ readily promoted this message here on 1 December and again here on 17 December.
On paper, the regulations still exist; in practice, the order has preserved the status quo. Clinicians may continue to initiate puberty‑blocker treatment for eligible young people while the litigation runs.
The judicial review has now been timetabled for 6–7 May in the Wellington High Court.
PATHA warns of “harmful” restrictions
PATHA had asked the Court to suspend the regulations outright, but instead obtained an order that effectively suspends enforcement activity rather than formally striking the rules down. That distinction prompted a further appeal, with PATHA warning that prescribers could be left wondering whether new prescriptions were safe to issue while the regulations remained in force on paper.
Appeal Court: ‘Extraordinary’ to enforce now
PATHA’s appeal was dismissed, but the Court of Appeal went out of its way to underline that public bodies would be taking a significant risk if they tried to treat puberty‑blocker prescriptions as potentially illegal at this stage.
In its judgment, the Court said it would be “extraordinary for any public body to facilitate a complaint about the prescription of puberty blockers as unethical because it is illegal, when doing so would disregard the intent of an order of the High Court which has, in effect, suspended the enforcement of the Regulations.” The Court confirmed that the interim relief “is effective to preserve PATHA’s position.”
For now, that means the Government’s attempted clamp‑down on new prescriptions exists in name only.
Carroll warns of harm and panic
One of PATHA’s leading figures in the case is Wellington general practitioner Dr Rona Carroll, a prominent voice in New Zealand’s gender‑affirming medicine industry. Carroll is an executive member of PATHA, has been described as a vice‑president and spokesperson for the organisation, and is routinely quoted in media coverage of “gender‑affirming care”, including by RNZ and other outlets.
Speaking to New Zealand Doctor Rata Aotearoa, Carroll said PATHA remains concerned that the regulations are not clinically justified and would be harmful if allowed to proceed. Carroll described “overwhelming” medical advice that puberty blockers did not need to be restricted and said the move to regulate them had already caused distress for young people and their families.
“There was a lot of panic amongst families and young people...and a lot of people were really scrambling to try to get access to care and to clinics before [19 December],” Carroll said of the period before the interim order was granted.
Carroll’s public bios state “she/her” pronouns, but New Zealand’s current settings around name and gender changes make it difficult for members of the public to independently verify whether clinicians involved in this field are biologically male or female. In this article, Carroll is therefore referred to by name only.
Who is Dr Rona Carroll?
Carroll’s footprint within the ‘gender‑affirming’ health sector is extensive and multi‑layered:
General practitioner in Wellington, with qualifications including FRCNZGP, MBChB and a Postgraduate Diploma in Health Sciences. A fellow of the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners since 2016.
GP on the gender‑affirming healthcare team at Mauri Ora Student Health and Counselling at Victoria University of Wellington, involved in direct care for trans and non‑binary students.
Senior lecturer in the Department of Primary Health Care & General Practice at the University of Otago Wellington, teaching and supervising in primary care and gender‑affirming medicine, specialising in youth health and transgender healthcare.
Member of PATHA’s Executive Committee, described in various contexts as vice‑president and spokesperson for the organisation.
Lead author of the Primary Care Gender Affirming Hormone Therapy Initiation Guidelines, which aim to embed hormone initiation in primary care rather than specialist services.
Regular commentator in mainstream media on puberty blockers and gender‑affirming care, including articles and opinion pieces for The Conversation that have been republished by RNZ and cited by other outlets.
In 2025, Carroll told 1News that updated gender‑affirming healthcare guidelines had been delayed while the Government considered restricting puberty blockers, describing that delay as political interference in what should be a routine clinical process. Carroll has also appeared in professional webinars and conferences on trans and “gender diverse” healthcare, further cementing a role as a go‑to expert for the pro‑trans medicine lobby.
What the May hearing will decide
When the judicial review is heard in May, the Court will be asked to examine both process and substance. On the process side, the judges will need to decide whether Ministers and officials lawfully exercised their powers in drafting and advancing the puberty‑blocker regulations under the Medicines Act.
On the substance, the case will test whether it is reasonable and proportionate for the state to restrict access to gonadotropin‑releasing hormone analogue treatment for minors in this way, given contested evidence about benefits, risks and long‑term outcomes. The ruling will have implications not only for young people currently seeking gender‑affirming interventions, but also for the wider question of how far elected governments can go in placing legal boundaries around controversial medical practices.
Penny’s previous stories on the puberty blocker situation in New Zealand
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The Canadian shooter is yet another transgender mental nut case as was at least one other recent case. The Canadian Police and everyone else involved are not even becoming realistic and are continuing to make dopey statements like a person in woman's clothing and referring to HIM as they.
Bloody Pathetic.
Transgenderism is a mental illness. Instead of accommodating these people in their delusion, they should be sent for help. Those who promote and advocate this insanity are just plain evil and should be treated accordingly. "Treating" these sick people with medical mutilation and pharmaceutical poisoning is criminal and must end.