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What will occur with the case if the Trump Administration changes its stance? The outcome of the case before the Supreme Court may be impacted by the change in administration as the federal government is the one who initiated the challenge.
Written by Adam Liptak.
Reporting live from the
The case being presented to the justices on Wednesday regarding trans rights is known as United States v. Skrmetti, indicating that it is a legal dispute initiated by the federal government.
The government’s control is set to shift next month, and it is highly likely that the Trump administration will reject the Biden administration’s claim that a Tennessee law restricting certain medical treatments for transgender minors goes against the Constitution.
Typically, this would indicate that there would be no need for the justices to make a decision, since both parties would agree that the law was in line with the constitution.
In 2017, a similar situation occurred when President-elect Donald J. Trump assumed office. In March of that year, the Supreme Court decided not to proceed with a case involving the rights of transgender students after the Trump administration changed its stance. The case was about a transgender boy in Virginia who wanted to use the boys’ bathroom at his high school.
However, there is a complication in this situation. Three families and a doctor initially challenged the Tennessee law, with the Biden administration supporting their case. Both the families and the government submitted requests for the Supreme Court to review the case, but only the government’s petition was accepted by the justices.
Instead of immediately throwing out the case, the court has the option to approve the companion petition at a later time. The court may choose to listen to a different argument, or they could use the one presented on Wednesday by Chase Strangio from the ACLU and Elizabeth B. Prelogar, the U.S. solicitor general representing the Biden administration.
In the past, new administrations would rarely change their positions. However, the Obama administration maintained its positions when it took office. On the other hand, the first Trump administration was more daring and changed positions in four significant cases during its first full Supreme Court term. This included cases on workers’ rights and voting rolls, and they were successful in all four instances.
The Biden administration did not hesitate to change its stance on certain issues, distancing itself from the policies of the previous Trump administration on five occasions. However, it was unsuccessful in four of those instances, as reported by Thomas Wolf from the Brennan Center for Justice.
Adam Liptak is a journalist who specializes in covering the Supreme Court and writes a column called Sidebar that discusses legal developments. He graduated from Yale Law School and worked as a lawyer for 14 years before starting at The Times in 2002. For additional information about Adam Liptak, click here.
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