South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson has joined a 22-state amicus brief supporting Florida's appeal to the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. The appeal seeks to enforce a state law regulating sex-modification procedures while an injunction against the law is reviewed. The case in question is Doe v. Surgeon General, State of Florida.
Florida's legislation imposes age restrictions on sex-change procedures, prohibiting puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries for minors seeking gender transition. In June, a federal district court permanently enjoined the enforcement of this law, citing legislative animus against transgender individuals as its basis.
"Groups that lose at the statehouse often take their fights to the courthouse, and that's what those who support the practice of transitioning children did in this case," said Attorney General Wilson. "State legislatures are empowered to pass laws that protect the health and safety of their citizens, and that includes protecting minors from harmful hormones and sex-altering surgeries."
The coalition's brief argues that the Florida district court failed to apply the necessary presumption of legislative good faith to Florida's law. Instead, it applied this presumption in favor of organizations such as the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), which advocates for providing hormonal and surgical interventions to minors identifying as transgender. The brief also highlighted evidence from Alabama's case suggesting that WPATH’s recommendations were influenced by "social justice lawyers" who advised against searching for evidence due to concerns it would weaken their policy goals and legal strategies.
Alongside South Carolina, attorneys general from Alabama led the brief with support from Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.
The full brief is available here.