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15h ago

Supreme Court to Hear Twin Cases on Transgender Athletes, Testing Title IX and Equal Protection

The outcome could reshape school athletics policy across nearly 30 states by defining how Title IX applies to transgender students.

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Becky Pepper-Jackson, a West Virginia high school student, and her mother, Heather Jackson, challenged a state law barring transgender girls from participating on female sports teams. The Supreme Court debates the case on Jan. 13, 2026.
A general view of the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., U.S., January 9, 2026. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo

Overview

  • The justices will hear back-to-back arguments on Jan. 13 in Little v. Hecox (Idaho) and West Virginia v. B.P.J. challenging state bans on transgender girls playing on girls’ teams.
  • Lower courts curtailed both laws, with the Fourth Circuit ruling West Virginia’s ban violates Title IX and the Ninth Circuit keeping Idaho’s ban on hold for the Boise State plaintiff.
  • Idaho challenger Lindsay Hecox asked the Court to dismiss her case as moot, and the justices deferred that request until after argument.
  • West Virginia and Idaho officials defend their statutes as fairness and safety measures, while the ACLU contends the laws are sex-based discrimination under Title IX and the Equal Protection Clause.
  • The cases arrive as federal policy shifted under a 2025 Trump executive order and an NCAA rule limiting women’s competition to athletes assigned female at birth, with NCAA testimony noting fewer than 10 transgender college athletes and a decision expected by late June.