Utah transgender sports lawsuit dropped as US Supreme Court to hear similar cases

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah’s ban on transgender athletes participating in high school sports that don’t align with their gender identity is “fully in effect,” Utah’s House speaker said, after plaintiffs challenging the law agreed to have their lawsuit dismissed.

The ban, passed in 2022, has been on hold for years pending the resolution of the lawsuit, brought by several anonymous athletes who claimed it violated their civil rights. While that law was paused, a state commission has been tasked with determining eligibility for transgender athletes who seek to participate.

“Big news for Utah!! HB11 … which we passed in 2022, is now fully in effect as the law in Utah,” Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz, R-Hooper, said on social media. “Biological males will no longer be able to compete in girls’ sports, the Athletic Eligibility Commission will be dissolved and eligibility for girls’ sports will once again be based on sex at birth.”

Schultz praised former GOP Rep. Kera Birkeland for sponsoring the controversial bill, saying it “wasn’t easy, but it was the right thing to do” and calling the lawsuit’s dismissal “a major win for fairness, safety and the preservation of women’s sports in Utah.”

The families of the two athletes and the Utah High School Activities Association entered into a stipulation agreement to dismiss the case with prejudice, meaning it can’t be refiled, according to court documents filed Monday.

An explanation for the dismissal was not given, but it comes after the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear similar cases from other states, which could ultimately determine the legality of transgender athlete bans nationwide. Idaho and West Virginia appealed lower court rulings on similar bans in their states, which sided with transgender students, and the high court will hear arguments during the term that just began; a ruling is expected next summer.

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