Will The Supreme Court Hear Its First Transgender Case This Year?
When the U.S. Supreme Court reconvenes on October 3, it may take up a case involving transgender rights for the first time.
Gavin Grimm, a 17-year-old trans student at Gloucester High School in Virginia, has filed suit against administrators for the right to use the boy's bathroom and locker rooms.
In June, an appeals court ruled in Grimm's favor, agreeing that forcing him to use the women's room was a violation of his Title IX protections against sex discrimination.
Now the school board is asking the high court to hear its appeal.
Should SCOTUS decline to hear the case, the appeals ruling stands and Grimm remains victorious. But if the justices put it on their docket, their verdict will have implications for trans-rights cases nationwide.
And with the court down to just eight justices, four liberal and four conservative, the results are anything but a foregone conclusion.
Last month, the Supreme Court issued an emergency stay on the appeals court order, blocking its enforcement and leaving Gavin Grimm in limbo while it considered taking the case.