Supreme Court hears case on state bans of trans women in sports

Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News on Jan 13, 2026

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The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday in a case that seeks to overturn state bans on transgender women competing in high school and college sports.

The conservative justices, who have been mostly skeptical of trans rights, will decide whether bans on trans women in team sports violate the Constitution or the landmark federal law known as Title IX that prohibits gender discrimination in schools.

Proponents of the bans say the laws protect the integrity of women sports by sidelining transgender women and girls who were identified as boys at birth.

Decisions in the twin cases, one of which covers college and the other on high school sports, are expected by early summer.

Though lower courts in both states blocked the bans, the outcome could well be different at the top court, which has allowed multiple restrictions on transgender people to be enforced in the past year.

Twenty-seven states have adopted laws barring minors from getting at least some elements of gender-affirming care, such as puberty blockers, hormone treatment and surgery — something the Supreme Court ruled last year that they could do. The Trump administration has tried to use funding and other policies to curtail the treatments for those under 19, which has sparked a legal challenge.

Democratic-led states have tried to protect access to the treatments, though many hospitals in blue states have also stopped offering them amid litigation fears.

At least 15 states have also adopted bans on transgender people using bathrooms in public schools — and in some cases other public buildings — that align with their gender.

Tuesday’s arguments focus on laws in Idaho and West Virginia that bar transgender girls and women from competing in girls and women’s athletic competitions.The majority of states have put in place similar policies in the last six years.

The organizations that oversee high school sports in at least Georgia, Nevada and Virginia have similar policies.

President Donald Trump, who often accuses Democrats of backing “transgender for everyone” last year signed an executive order intended to bar transgender athletes from competing in girls and women’s sports. The administration sued Maine for not complying the order and sparred over the issue with Gov. Janet Mills at a White House meeting of governors.