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A significant legal ruling was made in 2020 that provides protection for transgender employees.
There has been only one significant ruling by the Supreme Court regarding transgender rights, which is the case of Bostock v. Clayton County.
In 2020, a decision was made stating that a significant civil rights law safeguards gay and transgender employees from discrimination in the workplace.
Justice Neil M. Gorsuch, who was appointed to the court by President Donald J. Trump, stated in a 6-3 ruling that it is illegal for an employer to fire someone based solely on their sexual orientation or gender identity. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and the court’s liberal wing at the time also supported this decision.
The total length of the majority opinion and two dissents was 168 pages. President Donald J. Trump told reporters that he agreed with the court’s decision after reading it. He mentioned that although some people were surprised by the ruling, he respects and abides by it. Trump also described the decision as impactful and strong.
The justices had to determine the interpretation of a law, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, that prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of race, religion, national origin, and sex. They needed to ascertain if the prohibition on discrimination based on sex also extended to gay and transgender employees, affecting a significant number of workers.
Justice Gorsuch stated that it was indeed the case
The writer stated that when an employer terminates an employee for being homosexual or transgender, they are essentially firing them for characteristics or behaviors that would not have been an issue if they were a different gender.
Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. disagreed with the argument, stating that it is extremely arrogant and lacks any evidence to support it. He pointed out that there is no indication that any member of Congress understood the statutory text in that way when the law was passed in 1964.
The law mentioned in the text made it illegal to discriminate against employees based on their gender. The case being discussed now focuses on the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause, which is broad in scope and sets up a way to analyze cases rather than specific rules. Justice Alito expressed in 2020 that the outcome of this case could have a significant impact on future constitutional cases.
Adam Liptak is a journalist who focuses on the Supreme Court and writes a column called Sidebar about 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. Learn more about Adam Liptak.
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