The administration of US President Donald Trump has asked the Supreme Court to uphold its policy restricting transgender Americans from serving in the military, in the latest major case involving transgender rights to reach the conservative-leaning court.
Days after returning to office last year, Trump signed an executive order directing the Pentagon to prohibit transgender service members from serving in the armed forces, arguing that their participation was incompatible with military service.
The administration is appealing a ruling by a federal court in Washington, DC, which sided with a group of transgender service members already serving in the military and blocked the policy.
“The authority of the US military to determine who may serve in the nation’s armed forces is a matter of exceptional importance,” US Solicitor General D. John Sauer told the Supreme Court, according to a copy of the administration’s appeal reviewed by CNN.
The Supreme Court is expected to decide this fall whether it will hear the case. If the justices agree to take it up, a ruling could come as early as next summer.
Defense officials have said that approximately 4,240 service members across active-duty, reserve and National Guard ranks have a diagnosis of gender dysphoria. The condition refers to psychological distress that may occur when an individual’s gender identity differs from their sex assigned at birth. However, not every transgender person experiences gender dysphoria.
The case is the latest in a series of significant disputes involving transgender rights to reach the 6-3 conservative Supreme Court.
Earlier this year, the court, in another 6-3 decision, upheld state restrictions preventing transgender students from participating on girls’ sports teams.
In another 6-3 ruling last year, the court allowed a Tennessee law restricting puberty blockers and hormone therapy for minors seeking gender transition to remain in effect.
Trump made opposition to policies supporting transgender Americans a major part of his 2024 presidential campaign and introduced several measures after taking office aimed at reversing protections and policies established under previous administrations.
The president had also imposed restrictions on transgender military service during his first term. Former President Joe Biden subsequently repealed that policy in 2021.
Trump’s current military policy previously reached the Supreme Court in an emergency case last year, when the justices allowed the administration to enforce the ban. As is common with emergency rulings, the court did not provide an explanation for its decision. The three liberal justices publicly dissented but likewise did not disclose their reasoning.
Since then, however, lower courts have issued rulings limiting the implementation of the policy. In June, a divided three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit upheld a block on the policy affecting 28 service members who had challenged it in court.
Advocates for transgender service members have also accused the administration of aggressively pursuing the separation of other transgender personnel from the military.