Judge Refuses to Halt Lawsuit Challenging Alabama’s Ban on Transgender Care

A federal judge this week denied a request from the Justice Department to pause a lawsuit against Alabama’s law banning transgender care while other courts consider cases involving similar laws, The Hill reports.

The Justice Department, in its motion requesting a pause, wrote that “this exceptional legal landscape is quickly evolving,” and pointed to a request to the US Supreme Court to block a ban on gender-affirming care in Tennessee and another request for U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit to hear arguments about the ban in Alabama.

However, U.S. District Judge Liles Burke wrote a stay “may indeed be the most efficient way to proceed in this case, but not unless a higher court signals that it will decide the governing standard of review.”

Burke added that if either court decides to take up these cases, then a pause “may well be appropriate. But as long as those petitions remain pending, this case will move forward.”