A divided federal appeals court has cleared the way for Florida to enforce a law backed by Governor Ron DeSantis that restricts children from attending certain sexually explicit live performances, including drag shows deemed obscene for minors.

On Tuesday, August 5th, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit ruled 8-5 that Orlando restaurant Hamburger Mary’s failed to demonstrate it was likely to succeed in its First and Fourteenth Amendment challenge to Florida’s Protection of Children Act. The court vacated a preliminary injunction against the law and remanded the case to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida for further proceedings.

The law prohibits knowingly admitting a child to an adult live performance that "depicts or simulates nudity, sexual conduct, sexual excitement, or specific sexual activities ... lewd conduct, or the lewd exposure of prosthetic or imitation genitals or breasts." Writing for the court, Judge Andrew Brasher described the law as applying to performances that, for the age of the child present and taken as a whole, "lack serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value."

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier hailed the decision on social media, calling it a "huge victory" after three years of litigation and affirming the constitutionality of Florida’s ban on children attending sexualized drag shows.

Hamburger Mary’s originally filed the lawsuit in 2023 following the enactment of the measure. While the ruling permits enforcement of the law, Hamburger Mary’s may still seek additional judicial review.

Judge Grant wrote separately that the court did not need to rule on the scope of the injunction after concluding that Hamburger Mary’s was unlikely to succeed on the merits.

Sources