Maryland's law banning therapies that attempt to alter the sexual orientation or gender identity of LGBT youth is being challenged in federal court.

Such therapies go by names such as “conversion therapy,” “reparative therapy,” “sexual orientation change efforts” or “ex-gay therapy.”

Last week, New York became the latest state to approve such a ban.

(Related: New York approves transgender rights bill, bans “ex-gay” therapy.)

Christopher Doyle, a licensed counselor in Virginia and Maryland, claims in his lawsuit that the ban violates his free speech rights and the rights of clients “to prioritize their religious and moral values above unwanted same-sex sexual attractions, behaviors, or identities.”

Speaking with The Baltimore Sun, Doyle said: “If your goal is to change your sexual attraction, that's not a goal you can have in Maryland. You'll have to work on something else until you're 18.”

Doyle is represented by the Christian conservative group Liberty Counsel, which has challenged similar bans in New Jersey and California. The Supreme Court refused to hear both cases, allowing the laws to stand.

Liberty Counsel is asking the court to declare the ban unconstitutional.

Maryland's law went into effect on October 1, 2018.