Developments in Transgender Rights:
This week’s Transgender Rights Digest covers a judge's scathing ruling against the Department of Health and Human Services, the Montana Supreme Court protecting transgender ID documents, attacks on transgender healthcare for adults, and international developments that are impacting transgender people around the globe.
Want access to a detailed analysis of the transgender rights law in every U.S. state and territory? Please view our free Policy Resource Hub for Transgender Rights, an exclusive legal database where we update the state of the law every single day - so you’re always up to speed.
Top Line News Stories
Overview:
The Kennedy Declaration was ruled illegal by a federal judge.
The Southern Poverty Law Center was targeted by the federal government in an attempt to silence and coerce civil rights groups into submission.L4GG stands in solidarity with the SPLC against this attack.
Federal Judge Rebukes Kennedy Declaration As A “Wanton Disregard For The Rule Of Law”
On April 18, U.S. District Judge Mustafa T. Kasubhai issued a scathing, thoroughly reasoned judgment vacating Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s December “Declaration” that sought to overturn the standard of care for providers who deliver gender-affirming care to young people. Judge Kasubhai pulled no punches, excoriating Kennedy’s abuse of his role in issuing the Declaration along with his agency’s entire plan to eradicate services for transgender and nonbinary youth, which has already resulted in roughly 40 hospitals dropping their care.
Judge Kasubhai went as far as granting injunctive relief due to the government's repeated disregard for court orders and the rule of law, reserving the power to hold the government in contempt if they failed to comply with his order.
Context: As we noted in issue #1 of this Digest, on December 18, 2025, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. posted a “Declaration” to the HHS website titled “Safety, Effectiveness, and Professional Standards of Care for Sex-Rejecting Procedures on Children and Adolescents.”
DOJ Attempts to Silence Civil Rights Organization Through Criminal Indictment
On April 21st, 2026, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it was criminally charging Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) after securing an 11-count indictment against the organization for its use of paid confidential informants. These claims are an alarming escalation to this administration’s undermining of nearly a half-century of civil rights work by people and organizations like SPLC.
Note: Grand jury indictments have a very low bar for evidence and often include evidence inadmissible in court. They are used simply to determine if there is probable cause to pursue charges.
While no individuals have been charged at this time, Chris Geidner of Law Dork points out that “these counts include a forfeiture allegation later in the indictment that could be an extreme attempt — given the charge — to seek forfeiture of all donations to the organization if a conviction is secured on these counts.” This is a clear attempt to disrupt and bankrupt a highly effective civil rights organization with a deep history of fighting white supremacy and far-right hate groups, including those who target transgender and gender non-conforming people.
Lawyers for Good Government is part of the broad coalition of civil rights organizations that signed the Unity Pact, committing to stand together when any one of us comes under attack. In a statement issued April 22, we have called on Congress, the legal profession, and every person who believes dissent is not a crime to say so publicly, and to say so now. Traci Feit Love, Founder and Executive Director of Lawyers for Good Government, said: “This administration is using the Department of Justice to punish organizations that protect Americans from hate and discrimination, and to send a message to every nonprofit, law firm, and advocate in this country: fall in line, or you are next. We refuse that choice.”
Context: Southern Poverty Law Center plays a critical role in defending transgender rights and provides extensive research on anti-LGBTQ+ hate groups.
Legislation & Litigation Developments
Overview
The Montana Supreme Court upheld a district court order blocking the state from enforcing its policy banning transgender people from obtaining accurate ID documents.
The Idaho Governor signs numerous anti-LGBTQ+ laws targeting pride flags and “social transition” for transgender youth.
The Court of Appeals overturned a lower court ruling that was preventing 18 trans women from being transferred to a male prison.
Montana Supreme Court Victory Protects Transgender Residents
On April 14, the Montana Supreme Court upheld a district court order preliminarily enjoining the state from enforcing policies banning transgender people from obtaining birth certificates and driver’s licenses that align with their gender identity. In its decision, the Montana Supreme Court recognized that “[t]ransgender discrimination is, by its very nature, sex discrimination” and held that the policies likely violated the state constitution’s Equal Protection clause.
Malita Picasso, Staff Attorney for the ACLU’s LGBTQ & HIV Project, said in a statement that the “ruling is an important victory for transgender people across the state of Montana, and perhaps even a glimmer of relief to transgender people across the country who are enduring a relentless effort to strip away their rights at nearly every level of government.”
The Montana Constitution provides that “[t]he right of individual privacy is essential to the well-being of a free society and shall not be infringed without the showing of a compelling state interest.” The Supreme Court of Montana describes this provision as “one of the most stringent protections of its citizens’ right to privacy in the United States—exceeding even that provided by the federal constitution.”
Idaho Governor Signs Numerous Anti-LGBTQ+ Laws
On March 31, Governor Brad Little signed House Bill 561 into law, expanding the state’s existing restrictions on flags displayed on government property to any “land owned and maintained by the governmental entity, including buildings, adjoining land, parks, roads, and boulevards” and closed a loophole that allowed city officials to adopt pride flags as an official city flag.
On April 10, Gov. Little also signed House Bill 822, which will prohibit schools, healthcare providers, and child care providers from assisting a minor’s "social transition" without written consent from the minor's parent. Effective July 1, regulated institutions will be required to notify parents within three days after hearing from a young person that they would like support for their gender identity that does not align with the sex on record with the institution.
The bill defines "social transition" broadly, including:
asking to use a different name than a legal name (including a nickname),
using pronouns or titles that do not match the student's assumed sex assigned at birth,
using restrooms, locker rooms, changing rooms, or overnight lodging that do not match the student's assumed sex assigned at birth, and
playing on a sports team that does not match the student's assumed sex assigned at birth.
Any health care provider, school, or child care provider that refuses compliance can be fined up to $100,000 by the state attorney general.
Federal Court Opens the Door for Transfer of Incarcerated Transgender Women to Men’s Prisons
On April 17th, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia issued an Order potentially allowing for 17 transgender women currently held in women’s prisons to be transferred to men’s prisons. Attorneys for the women argue that factors specific to the plaintiffs, including their physical appearance, the amount of time they have been undergoing hormone therapy, and their histories of facing sexual violence, mean that transfer would result in violations of their constitutional rights. Last year, district court Judge Royce Lamberth agreed, issuing an order blocking the inmates’ transfer. The Court of Appeals, however, found that Judge Lamberth’s ruling failed to adequately explain the particularized harm faced by each of the individual plaintiffs and sent the case back to his court for further review based on the merits. While it’s easy to assume this is a loss, legal experts explain this was a best-case scenario, as the plaintiffs will now have the opportunity to go back before Judge Lamberth to provide additional clarity on their individualized harms.
Context: This case arose after Trump issued an executive order early in his second term directing the federal government to enact an agenda of transgender erasure, including, among other things, requiring prisons to house transgender women in men’s facilities.
Trend and Policy Watch
Overview
The Washington Post published an opinion by its Editorial Board targeting healthcare for transgender adults.
The Florida Attorney General claims in a letter that Miss America and Miss Florida may have violated Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Practices Act by defining some transgender women as “women.”
The Washington Post and Right Wing Organizations Set Their Sights on a New Enemy: Transgender Adults
On April 17th, 2026, the Editorial Board of The Washington Post published an opinion piece targeting healthcare for transgender adults. This opinion follows an “exposé” style story originally published by City-Journal, a self-described urban-policy magazine run by the far-right think-tank Manhattan Institute– “exposing” that transgender migrants have access to healthcare in California. The Washington Post takes things one step further and questions why taxpayers should pay for transgender healthcare for adults at all.
This “just asking questions” style opinion is reminiscent of the New York Times articles that fueled the attacks on transgender rights that still rage on today. The Post is dumping gasoline on the fire of polarization as the Trump administration and far-right groups seek to scapegoat transgender people for any and all social issues, a move that experts warn must be wholly rejected, lest “the entire country becomes responsible for greater atrocity crimes against the trans community in the future.”
Florida AG Claims It’s Deceptive To Claim Transgender Women Are Women
Florida’s Attorney General, James Uthmeier, sent a letter to Miss America and Miss Florida warning that the groups may have violated Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Practices Act by defining transgender women who had received a vaginoplasty as “women.” In the letter, Uthmeier claimed that since the organization advertises this competition as for “women,” the organization may have falsely advertised and misled contestants. This letter is in direct response to the organization removing a contestant who refused to sign a contract that included transgender contestants as eligible in the pageant competition under this definition of “women.”Uthmeier gave the organizations until May 1 to “take corrective action” or risk “enforcement action.”
Florida’s Office of the Attorney General has increasingly used the state’s consumer protection laws to go after groups supportive of transgender people. In December, it filed litigation claiming that the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), the Endocrine Society, and the American Association of Pediatrics (AAP) violated Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act by publishing supportive policies for providing gender-affirming care for trans youth. In March, the AAP filed a lawsuit against the Florida Attorney General in response, saying his legal attack on the AAP’s gender-affirming care guidance is unconstitutional.
International Impacts
While this newsletter typically focuses on domestic policy and legal trends, we would be remiss if we did not, at times, zoom out even further and look at how these policies and trends fit into the greater context of the international struggle for bodily autonomy, liberation, and democracy.
Overview
A Canadian health clinic has ceased providing hormone replacement therapy to students under 19 from the United States in compliance with Executive Order 14187, despite having no legal implications outside of the United States.
The Experts with the United Nations raise an alarm on a new law potentially outlawing the spreading of information that raises awareness about issues involving LGBTQ+ people.
The Court of Justice of the European Union ruled Hungary violated EU law when it banned content featuring LGBTQ+ people.
U.S. Policy on Transgender Healthcare Impact Doesn’t Stop At The Border
The Trump administration’s domestic policy continues to radiate beyond our borders. McGill University in Montreal, Canada, has informed students that they will no longer be prescribing hormone replacement therapy to students from the United States if they are under the age of 19, in accordance with Executive Order 14187. Doctors with McGill Wellness Hub informed Montreal Trans Patient Union that the exclusion was due to the Health and Human Services form that encouraged people to report doctors in the United States and Canada who provided gender affirming care to transgender youth.
Celeste Trianon, a Canadian legal scholar and transgender rights activist, denounced the decision, saying, “McGill has betrayed its most vulnerable students — some of whom went to McGill specifically to escape Donald Trump’s policies — through compliance with an executive order that has no force and effect in Canada.”
United Nations Experts Raise Alarm On Anti-LGBT Speech Law In Belarus
United Nations experts are raising the alarm on a new law passed in Belarus, the northern neighbor of Ukraine in Eastern Europe. The law creates a liability for “disseminating in any form information aimed at creating among citizens an impression of the attractiveness of homosexual relations, gender transition, childlessness or the acceptability of paedophilia”.
The UN Experts express deep concern that the law could violate international human rights standards and urge the Belarusian government to retract the new law and ensure that law enforcement complies with these standards.
Hungary Violated EU Law By Banning LGBTQ+ Content
On April 21, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that Hungary violated European Union (EU) law when it enacted a 2021 law that banned content featuring LGBTQ+ people in media accessible in schools and on primetime television. According to the Human Rights Watch, the law had a chilling effect on educators, journalists, and nonprofit organizations and created an “increasingly hostile environment for LGBT people and those working to support them.”
The CJEU found that the law “contrary to the very identity of the Union as a common legal order in a society in which pluralism prevails” and “interfere[d] with several fundamental rights” including “the prohibition on discrimination based on sex or sexual orientation, respect for private and family life, and the freedom of expression and information.”
The EU executive can now seek financial penalties if Hungary fails to comply, which requires Hungary to remedy the violation and bring its laws into line with EU law.
Take Action!
Tell the Major Pediatric Medicine Conference To Remove Anti-Trans Panel
One of the largest pediatric medical society gatherings will convene on April 24th in Boston, MA, but some clinicians have expressed concerns with the conference's singular panel on transgender medicine. The panel will feature academics and pediatricians with ties to SPLC-designated hate group, the Society for Evidence-based Gender Medicine (SEGM).
ACTION: Send a message to the society and ask them to cancel the panel! This can be done via this form or by directly emailing Daniel.Rauch@HMHN.org.