The UK Supreme Court unanimously ruled on Wednesday that transgender women do not conform to the legal definition of “women” reserved for biologically born women.
The five judges in the court agreed to a landmark ruling under the country’s 2010 Equality Act, “referring to biological women and biological sex” “sexual” “women” and “gender,” Judge Patrick Hodge said.
The court confirmed that the ruling “protected from discrimination based on gender reallocation” “does not exclude protection from trans people.”
This definition was challenged in 2018 after the Scottish Parliament passed a law that said it should account for 50% of the representatives of the Scottish Public Commission. Scottish officials said they included trans women with gender certification certificates that provide legal recognition of someone’s woman’s gender under the Equality Act.
Women Scotland (FWS), the women’s rights group that poses a legal challenge, argued that the redefinement of women in Scottish officials exceeded Parliamentary powers.
“By linking the definition of sex to the usual meaning means that the public committee could comprise 50% of men and 50% of men with certificates, but still legally meet the target of female representatives.”
The outcome of this case could affect gender-based rights and unity facilities across the UK, the group said.
With post wire
