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If the Trump Administration changes its stance, it could impact the outcome of the case that is currently before the Supreme Court because the federal government is the one who initiated the challenge.
Written by Adam Liptak
Sending updates from Washington
The case regarding transgender rights being heard by the justices on Wednesday is known as United States v. Skrmetti, indicating that it is a legal dispute initiated by the federal government.
However, with the upcoming change in government control next month, it is highly likely that the Trump administration will reject 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 anything for the justices to rule on because both parties would agree that the law is constitutional.
In 2017, a similar situation occurred when President-elect Donald J. Trump was inaugurated. In March of that year, the Supreme Court decided not to rule on a case involving the rights of transgender students after the Trump administration changed its stance. The case involved 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 side. Both the families and the government submitted separate requests for the Supreme Court to review the case, and the justices decided to only accept the government’s petition.
Instead of immediately 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 new argument, or it could use the one presented on Wednesday by Chase Strangio from the American Civil Liberties Union and Elizabeth B. Prelogar from the U.S. solicitor general, who is representing the Biden administration.
Historically, new administrations used to make few changes to their positions. For example, the Obama administration did not change any positions when they took office. However, the first Trump administration was more daring in its approach. It changed positions on four major cases during its first full Supreme Court term, including those related to workers’ rights and voter registration. The administration was successful in all four cases.
The Biden administration has not hesitated to change positions, distancing itself from the approaches taken by the Trump administration on five occasions. However, in four of those cases, they were unsuccessful, as reported by Thomas Wolf from the Brennan Center for Justice.
Adam Liptak is a journalist who focuses on the Supreme Court and writes a column called Sidebar, which discusses legal news. He went to Yale Law School and worked as a lawyer for 14 years before starting at The New York Times in 2002. To learn more about Adam Liptak, click here.
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