Allen & Overy files brief in support of transgender healthcare rights

A&O partnered with Stonewall UK and numerous other LGBTQ+ rights organizations around the globe to argue that the trial court correctly struck down a statute enacted by the State of Alabama that would prohibit transgender adolescents from obtaining gender-affirming healthcare and would preclude physicians from providing such care. A&O and Stonewall UK previously partnered together to combat a similar law enacted by the State of Arkansas. More information about that case is available here.

A&O worked together with Stonewall UK and LGBTQ+ rights organizations in Sweden, Finland, Australia, New Zealand, Denmark, Germany, Spain, Mexico, and Norway to provide the Court with information about the gender-affirming healthcare that is available to adolescents in those countries, and to show the Court that the Alabama ban is an outlier. More information about the lawsuit is available here.

Andrew Rhys Davies, a New York based Partner at Allen & Overy, said:  “A&O is committed to promoting the rights and inclusion of LGBT+ individuals, and is proud to have partnered with Stonewall UK again in its efforts to defend the rights of transgender people.”

Nancy Kelley, CEO of Stonewall UK, said: “Trans healthcare is a human right, and trans young people deserve access to high-quality and appropriate healthcare. We are proud to submit this amicus brief in support of the plaintiffs on appeal, and to show the global consensus around the importance of access to transition-related healthcare for young people.”

Justin Ormand, an associate of Allen & Overy, who, along with Andrew Rhys Davies and Michael Rodriguez Martinez, authored the brief, said:  “We were proud to partner again with Stonewall UK and other leading LGBTQ+ organizations around the world to show the Court why Alabama’s attempt to ban gender-affirming healthcare to adolescents finds no support in the healthcare practices in place in other developed nations.”

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) is one of A&O’s five global strategic business priorities. We want A&O to be a workplace where a diverse group of people can be themselves and bring the best of themselves to their careers and where, as a firm, we can contribute to promoting DE&I in our profession and with our clients.