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A significant legal precedent was set in 2020 that protects the rights of transgender employees.
There has been only one significant ruling by the Supreme Court regarding the rights of transgender individuals, which is the case of Bostock v. Clayton County.
The decision made in 2020 stated that a significant civil rights statute shields gay and transgender employees from discrimination in the workplace.
Justice Neil M. Gorsuch, who was appointed by President Donald J. Trump, stated in a 6-3 ruling that it is illegal for an employer to terminate an employee based solely on their sexual orientation or gender identity. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and the four liberal justices also agreed with this decision.
The total number of pages for the majority opinion and two dissents was 168. President Donald J. Trump told reporters that he agreed with the ruling. He mentioned that he had read the decision and while some people may have been surprised by it, he respected their ruling. He also referred to it as a strong decision.
The justices were tasked with interpreting a law, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, that prohibits discrimination in employment based on race, religion, national origin, and sex. They needed to determine if the prohibition against discrimination "because of sex" also extended to include gay and transgender employees.
Justice Gorsuch stated that it was indeed the case
He stated that when an employer terminates an employee for being homosexual or transgender, they are essentially firing them for characteristics or behaviors that they would not have had an issue with if the employee belonged to a different gender.
Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. disagreed with the argument, stating that he found the confidence in the argument to be surprising. He also mentioned that there is no proof that any member of Congress understood the text of the law in that manner when it was passed in 1964.
The law in question banned discrimination in the workplace based on gender. The case being discussed focuses on the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment, which is broadly written and used to create a framework for analysis rather than strict rules. Justice Alito suggested that the outcome of this case could influence future decisions in constitutional law.
Adam Liptak is a journalist who reports on the Supreme Court and writes a column called Sidebar, which focuses on legal news. He attended Yale Law School and worked as a lawyer for 14 years before starting his career at The New York Times in 2002. Learn more about Adam Liptak by visiting his profile.
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