Oral arguments are scheduled for April 22 at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit regarding the Trump administration’s plan to remove trans servicemembers from the U.S. Military.
Last month, U.S. District Judge Ana C. Reyes in D.C. issued a nationwide injunction blocking Trump’s plan. But the injunction has been stayed administratively while the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit reviews the matter.
President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Jan. 20, claiming that having trans servicemembers would negatively impact the military. Defense Secretary Peter B. Hegseth subsequently issued a policy effectively banning all transgender servicemembers.
The Trump administration argues that permitting trans servicemembers weakens the military, is detrimental to unit cohesion and is too costly due to alleged health issues posed by trans servicemembers.
However, advocates for trans servicemembers say the government hasn’t proven any of those negative assertions. They say it’s unlawful discrimination and unconstitutional to purge trans servicemembers from the military — many of whom have served honorably for decades.
In court papers, government attorneys have argued the Department of Defense isn’t targeting trans servicemembers as a class of individuals. Instead, the DOD says it’s addressing a medical condition — gender dysphoria — which government attorneys say should be a disqualifying factor for military service.
Under Hegseth’s policy, an active-duty transgender service member could obtain a waiver and continue to serve only if there is “a compelling governmental interest” in their retention and they have not had symptoms of gender dysphoria for 36 months, have never attempted to transition, and are willing to serve in their birth sex.
Advocates for trans service members say the waiver is so restrictive it effectively purges all open trans servicemembers within the U.S. military.
On April 22, three appellate judges will hear oral arguments on the dispute. They are Gregory Katsas, Cornelia Pillard and Neomi Rao.
The oral arguments are scheduled to begin 9:30 a.m. and each side will have 30 minutes. The arguments will take place in Courtroom 31 on the 5th Floor at the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in Washington, D.C.
An audio-video feed of the oral arguments will be broadcast to another courtroom within the courthouse if Courtroom 31 is filled to capacity. Members of the public unable to sit in Courtroom 31 will be directed to the overflow courtroom at that time, according to a press release issued by the court.
Audio of the oral arguments will be live-streamed on the Court’s YouTube channel. To minimize congestion on the court’s website, the public is encouraged to go directly to the court’s YouTube channel. An audio recording of the oral arguments will be available on the Court’s website as soon as it is available, according to a press release issued by the court.
Arguing on behalf of trans servicemembers will be attorney Shannon P. Minter. Arguing on behalf of the Trump administration’s position will be attorney Jason Manion, according to court records.
Minter issued this statement: “As counsel for the servicemembers challenging the ban, we are looking forward to the opportunity next Tuesday to highlight how severely this ban harms both servicemembers and the military. The three judges conducting the hearing will rule on the government’s request to stay the district court’s order blocking enforcement of the ban while the litigation proceeds. We have strongly opposed the government’s request because it has no legal basis. As the district court found, the Hegseth policy openly discriminates, the government has no evidence to support it, and it is causing severe harm. There is no valid reason to stay the district court’s order.”
In related news, a federal judge in the state of Washington has also blocked implementation of Trump’s ban on transgender servicemembers.
On March 27, U.S. District Court Judge Benjamin H. Settle in Tacoma ruled in favor of several long-serving transgender military members who say the ban is discriminatory and would harm their careers and reputations.
Settle issued a nationwide preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration’ plan to purge trans servicemembers. Settle’s preliminary injunction remains in place while the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reviews the matter.