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If the Trump Administration changes its position on a case, it could impact the outcome of the case before the Supreme Court since the federal government initiated the challenge.
Written by Adam Liptak.
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The case involving transgender rights that the judges will hear on Wednesday is titled United States v. Skrmetti, indicating that it is a legal dispute initiated by the federal government.
However, the upcoming change in government control is likely to result in the Trump administration rejecting the Biden administration’s claim that a Tennessee law prohibiting certain medical treatments for transgender minors goes against the Constitution.
Typically, this would indicate that there is no longer a need for the justices to make a decision, as both parties would agree that the law is constitutional.
In 2017, there was a situation where President-elect Donald J. Trump was inaugurated. After the Trump administration changed their stance on transgender students’ rights, the Supreme Court decided to no longer address a case about a transgender boy in Virginia wanting to use the boys’ bathroom at his school.
However, there is a complication in this situation. Three families and a doctor challenged the Tennessee law, and the Biden administration joined their side. Each party filed their own requests for the Supreme Court to review the case, and the court decided to only accept the petition from the government.
Instead of rejecting 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 use the one presented on Wednesday by Chase Strangio from the ACLU and Elizabeth B. Prelogar from the U.S. solicitor general, who will be representing the Biden administration.
In the past, new administrations typically did not change their positions frequently. For example, the Obama administration did not change any positions when they started their term. However, the first Trump administration was more daring in this aspect, changing positions in four significant cases during its first full Supreme Court term. These cases involved workers’ rights and voting rolls, and the administration was successful in all four instances.
The Biden administration did not hesitate to change its stance on issues, distancing itself from the policies of the Trump administration on five occasions. However, it was unsuccessful in four of those cases, as reported by Thomas Wolf from the Brennan Center for Justice.
Adam Liptak is a journalist who focuses on reporting on the Supreme Court and legal news in his column called Sidebar. He attended Yale Law School and worked as a lawyer for 14 years before starting his career at The New York Times in 2002. To learn more about Adam Liptak, visit his profile.
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