A transgender athlete’s petition has been returned to a trial court in Minnesota after an appeals court determined whether her gender identity prevented her from being unlawfully denied access to women’s competitions.
JayCee Cooper, a trans woman, sued USA Powerlifting in 2021 after the organization denied her 2018 request for membership. She claimed that the organization was in violation of the Minnesota Human Rights Act, a state law prohibiting discrimination based on gender.
A district court judge determined that Cooper had been the subject of discrimination the next year. USA Powerlifting appealed, and Cooper cross-appealed. In its comprehensive Monday decision, the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed, reversed, and sent parts of the case back.
According to Judge Matthew Johnson, “The circumstantial evidence on which Cooper relies, when viewed in a light most favorable to her, is sufficient to allow a fact-finder to draw inferences and thereby determine that USAPL excluded Cooper from its competitions because of her gender identity (i.e., transgender status).”
Gender Justice Legal Director Jess Braverman, an attorney for Cooper, said, “We agree that it’s illegal to discriminate against transgender people in Minnesota, but we think it’s crystal clear that that’s what USA Powerlifting did in this case, so we don’t agree with the court’s ultimate conclusion that the case needs to go back for a trial, and we’re currently weighing all of our options.”
Cooper, according to Braverman, may ask the Minnesota Supreme Court to review the decision or return to the lower court to continue arguing the case.
Ansis Viksnins, USA Powerlifting’s lead attorney, welcomed the decision as having “corrected some of the errors” made by the lower judge and has given their side an opportunity “to show our side of the story” to a judge.
“USA Powerlifting did not exclude Ms. Cooper because of her gender identity,” Viksnins said. “Due to her anatomy, USA Powerlifting prevented her from competing in the women’s division. She was born male and went through male puberty, giving her significant advantages over those who would be competing in the women’s division.”
Cooper asked USA Powerlifting for a “medicinal-use exemption” to take spironolactone, a medication prescribed to treat her gender dysphoria, “but JayCee was denied because she’s transgender,” Braverman said.
The Minnesota Department of Human Rights received her complaint in 2019, but it was later withdrawn before making a decision. According to Braverman, the department filed an amicus brief in the lawsuit in support of Cooper.
Transgender people’s participation in sports has become a contentious issue in schools and private clubs across the nation. Transgender people are prohibited from playing high school and college sports in many Republican-led states.
Last week, a group of college athletes, including swimmer Riley Gaines, sued the NCAA, alleging the organization violated their Title IX rights by allowing Lia Thomas, who is a transgender woman, to compete in the 2022 national championships.
