Prom
If the Trump Administration changes its stance, it could impact the outcome of the case before the Supreme Court because the federal government was the one who initially brought the challenge.
Written by Adam Liptak
Writing from the capital
The legal case being discussed on Wednesday involving transgender rights is known as United States v. Skrmetti, indicating that it is a lawsuit initiated by the government.
However, the government’s control is expected to shift next month, and it is 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 a need for the justices to make a decision, since both parties would then acknowledge that the law is constitutional.
A similar situation occurred in 2017 when President-elect Donald J. Trump took office. In March of that year, the Trump administration changed its stance on transgender student rights which led to the Supreme Court dropping a case regarding a transgender boy in Virginia wanting to use the boys’ bathroom at his high school.
However, there is a complication in this situation. Three families and a doctor originally challenged the Tennessee law, with the Biden administration supporting them. Both the families and the government submitted requests to the Supreme Court for a review, but only the government’s petition was accepted by the justices.
Instead of rejecting the case, the court has the option to approve the companion petition at a later time. The court may choose to consider a different argument or refer back to the one presented on Wednesday. During this hearing, lawyer Chase Strangio from the ACLU will be advocating for the families, while Elizabeth B. Prelogar, the U.S. solicitor general representing the Biden administration, will also be making arguments.
In the past, new administrations typically made few changes to existing positions. However, the Obama administration did not change any 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. These cases included issues related to workers’ rights and voting rolls, and the administration was successful in all four cases.
The Biden administration has not been hesitant to change its stance on certain issues. It has rejected the strategies used by the Trump administration on five occasions, and has been unsuccessful in four of those instances, as reported by Thomas Wolf of the Brennan Center for Justice.
Adam Liptak is a journalist who focuses on reporting about the activities of the Supreme Court and writes a regular column called Sidebar, which discusses recent legal changes and updates. He attended Yale Law School and worked as a lawyer for 14 years before starting his career at The New York Times in 2002. For more information about Adam
Prom
Index of Website
Navigation for Information on the Website