A U.S. Appeals Court has ruled that a student who was denied the chance to hand out invitations to classmates to a church Christmas party had her rights violated by the school district.

The child, identified as K.A., should have been allowed to hand out the invitations in a way that did not cause a “substantial disruption” to the class.

“We were very pleased with the court’s ruling in this. For several years there has been a move in the courts to respect the first amendment rights of students in particular, particularly younger students in elementary and middle school to share their faith at school,” K.A.’s attorney Matt Sharp of Alliance Defending Freedom said. “What this opens up is not just an invitation to a Christmas party but to any other religious event. It opens the door for K.A. to distribute any religious materials whether it’s an invitation to a church event or something else. As long as it’s done in a manner that doesn’t create a material disruption in school.”

The court ruling pointed out there were no restrictions on other students issuing invitations to non-school functions and that some private groups had been allowed to send invitations to students.

“The fact that K.A. was only in the fifth-grade and the invitation originated from her church does not mandate a different approach,” Judge Thomas Vanaskie wrote in his 31-page opinion.