LONDON (AP) 鈥� The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the U.K. equalities law defines a woman as someone born biologically female.
Justice Patrick Hodge said five judges at the court had ruled unanimously that 鈥渢he terms 鈥榳oman鈥� and 鈥榮ex鈥� in the Equality Act refer to a biological woman and biological sex."
The ruling means that a transgender person with a certificate that recognizes them as female should not be considered a woman for equality purposes.
But the court added that its ruling 鈥渄oes not remove protection from trans people,鈥� who are 鈥減rotected from discrimination on the ground of gender reassignment.鈥�
The case stems from a 2018 law passed by the Scottish Parliament stating that there should be a 50% female representation on the boards of Scottish public bodies. That law included transgender women in its definition of women.
For Women Scotland (FWS), a women's rights group, had challenged that law, arguing that its redefinition of woman went beyond parliament鈥檚 powers. But Scottish officials then issued new guidance stating that the definition of woman included someone with a gender recognition certificate.
FWS successfully sought to overturn that.
The group had said the outcome of the case could have consequences in Scotland, England and Wales for sex-based rights as well as single-sex facilities such as toilets, hospital wards and prisons.
鈥淣ot tying the definition of sex to its ordinary meaning means that public boards could conceivably comprise of 50% men, and 50% men with certificates, yet still lawfully meet the targets for female representation,鈥� the group鈥檚 director Trina Budge said previously.
The challenge was rejected by a court in 2022, but the group was granted permission last year to take its case to the Supreme Court.
Aidan O鈥橬eill, a lawyer for FWS, told the Supreme Court judges 鈥� three men and two women 鈥� that under the Equality Act 鈥渟ex鈥� should refer to biological sex and as understood 鈥渋n ordinary, everyday language.鈥�
鈥淥ur position is your sex, whether you are a man or a woman or a girl or a boy is determined from conception in utero, even before one鈥檚 birth, by one鈥檚 body,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t is an expression of one鈥檚 bodily reality. It is an immutable biological state.鈥�
The women鈥檚 right group counted among its supporters author J.K. Rowling, who reportedly donated tens of thousands of pounds to back its work. The 鈥淗arry Potter鈥� writer has been that the rights for trans women should not come at the expense of those who are born biologically female.
Opponents, including Amnesty International, said excluding transgender people from sex discrimination protections conflicted with human rights laws.
Amnesty submitted a brief in court saying it was concerned about the deterioration of the rights for trans people in the U.K. and abroad.
鈥淎 blanket policy of barring trans women from single-sex services is not a proportionate means to achieve a legitimate aim,鈥� the human rights group said.
Sylvia Hui And Brian Melley, The Associated Press
