The UK Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that the UK equalities law defines a woman as an individual born biologically female.
“The terms ‘woman’ and ‘sex’ in the Equality Act refer to a biological woman,” Supreme Court Justice Patrick Hodge said.
Five Supreme judges unanimously passed the judgement.
The ruling states that a transgender person with a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) identifying them as female is not considered a woman under UK’s equality law.
The case originated from a 2018 Scottish law passed by the Scottish Parliament, requiring 50% female representation on public boards, which included transgender women in its definition of women.
The ruling “does not remove protection from trans people,” who are “protected from discrimination on the ground of gender reassignment,” said UK top court.
What was the case about?
A women’s rights group, For Women Scotland (FWS), had challenged the 2018 Scottish law, arguing that the redefinition of ‘woman’ is beyond parliament’s powers.
Scottish officials then issued new guidelines which stated that the definition of a woman included individuals with a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC).
The Scottish women’s rights group said the ruling could impact sex-based rights and single-sex spaces such as toilets, hospital wards, and prisons, across Scotland, England, and Wales.
“Not tying the definition of sex to its ordinary meaning means that public boards could conceivably comprise of 50% men, and 50% men with certificates, yet still lawfully meet the targets for female representation,” said Trina Budge, FWS’ director.
This meant that redefining sex could let boards meet female quotas with all-male members if some had GRCs.
The Scottish court rejected the challenge in 2022, but the group was allowed to appeal to the Supreme Court last year.
What does this mean for trans people?
Amnesty International filed a court brief expressing concern over the declining rights of trans people in the UK and globally.
The group argued that removing sex discrimination protections for transgender people violates human rights laws.
“A blanket policy of barring trans women from single-sex services is
not a proportionate means to achieve a legitimate aim,” Amnesty said in a submission to the court.
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