Supreme Court Move Is a Win for Trans Student

The Supreme Court said Monday that it wouldn't weigh in on the thorny question of transgender students and school bathrooms. That inaction amounts to a victory for transgender student Gavin Grimm, whose high school in Virginia wouldn't allow him to use the boys bathroom, reports USA Today. A lower court ruled in Grimm's favor in 2020, and that decision will now stand. However, the Washington Post notes that Grimm's case won't establish a national precedent. The Supreme Court didn't explain its decision to skip the case, though it did say that conservative justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito wanted to hear it.

For Grimm, the case is somewhat moot because he graduated in 2017, per Forbes. Two years prior to that, he sued his high school in Gloucester County because it required him to use a single-stall unisex bathroom instead of the bathroom that aligned with his gender identity. An ACLU attorney who represents Grimm called Monday's action "an incredible victory for Gavin and transgender students around the country," while Grimm himself said in a statement that he is "glad that my yearslong fight to have my school see me for who I am is over," per the Post. It's not expected to be the court's last word on the matter, however. (More states are establishing laws to bar transgender girls from competing on girls' sports teams.)