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The outcome of the case may be impacted if the Trump Administration changes its stance, as they were the ones who originally brought the challenge to the Supreme Court.
Written by Adam Liptak
Writing from the nation
The case being heard by the justices on Wednesday regarding transgender rights is titled United States v. Skrmetti, indicating that it is a legal challenge initiated by the federal government.
The upcoming change in government control next month will likely result in the Trump administration rejecting the Biden administration’s stance that a Tennessee law prohibiting certain medical treatments for transgender minors goes against the Constitution.
This typically indicates that there would be no further decisions for the judges to make, as both parties would agree that the law was in line with the constitution.
In 2017, a similar situation occurred when President-elect Donald J. Trump assumed office. In March of that year, the Supreme Court decided to dismiss a case related to the rights of transgender students after the Trump administration changed its stance. The case in question involved a transgender boy in Virginia who was fighting for the right to use the boys’ bathroom at his high school.
However, there is a complication in this situation. The Tennessee law was first challenged by three families and a doctor, with the Biden administration joining their side. Both the families and the government submitted separate requests for the Supreme Court to review the case, and the justices chose 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 date. The court may choose to listen to a new argument, or it may refer back to the one presented on Wednesday by Chase Strangio from the ACLU and Elizabeth B. Prelogar, the U.S. solicitor general representing the Biden administration.
In the past, new administrations typically did not change their positions very often. For example, the Obama administration did not change positions at all when they took office. However, the first Trump administration was more daring. They changed positions in four significant cases during their first full term in the Supreme Court, including those related to workers’ rights and voting rolls, and they were successful in all four cases.
The Biden administration did not hesitate to change its stance on various issues. They rejected the methods used by the Trump administration in five instances, and in four of those cases, they were not successful, as reported by Thomas Wolf from the Brennan Center for Justice.
Adam Liptak reports on the activities of the Supreme Court and is the author of Sidebar, a column focusing on legal updates. He attended Yale Law School and worked as a lawyer for 14 years prior to joining The New York Times in 2002. To learn more about Adam Liptak, please visit the provided link.
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