North Carolina Supreme Court Rules That Family Can Sue Over Vaccination Without Consent

A federal law does not bar claims brought by the parent, the state’s top court says.

A boy receives a COVID-19 vaccine at a clinic at Los Angeles Mission College on Jan. 19, 2022. Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images

A federal law granting broad immunity to vaccine administrators and others does not preempt charges that a mother’s constitutional rights were violated when her son was given a COVID-19 vaccine without her consent, the North Carolina Supreme Court has ruled.

Emily Happel and her teenage son can proceed with a lawsuit against their local school board and a medical organization, according to the March 21 ruling. Happel’s son, Tanner Smith, who was 14 at the time, was given a COVID-19 vaccine in 2021 even though administrators did not obtain parental consent.