Supreme Court Upholds State Laws Limiting Women’s Sports to Biological Females
In-house counsel for educational institutions, sports governing bodies, and state education agencies must act because the ruling confirms state authority to enact restrictions on transgender athletes’ participation in women’s sports while leaving the legality of inclusive policies unresolved for future litigation.
The U.S. Supreme Court issued a divided ruling upholding state laws that restrict participation in girls’ and women’s sports to biological females, rejecting equal protection and Title IX challenges filed by two transgender athletes. The 6-3 majority held that Idaho and West Virginia’s restrictions do not violate the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, while all nine justices agreed the Title IX challenge to West Virginia’s law failed. The holding is permissive, not mandatory: it does not require schools or sports organizations to adopt such restrictions, nor does it resolve whether inclusive policies allowing transgender athletes to compete on women’s teams are legal. In-house counsel for educational institutions, sports leagues, and state agencies should review existing participation policies, align them with applicable state law, and monitor ongoing lower court litigation addressing the unresolved inclusive policy question.