Author JK Rowling has welcomed the UK Supreme Court ruling that transgender women who have a gender recognition certificate are not “women” under the law.
Campaign group For Women Scotland (FWS) challenged the Scottish government over the definition of “women” in a law governing female representation on public boards.
It argued the definition should not extend to transgender women, as that would have far-reaching impacts on female equality and single sex spaces.
At the Supreme Court on Wednesday, judges delivered their ruling, finding that the definition of a woman under the Equalities Act 2010 is restricted to “biological women and biological sex”.
The Harry Potter author, a women’s rights campaigner who has caused controversy with her outspoken views, said in a post on X that the ruling “protected the rights of women and girls across the UK”.
She wrote in reaction to the ruling: “It took three extraordinary, tenacious Scottish women with an army behind them to get this case heard by the Supreme Court and, in winning, they’ve protected the rights of women and girls across the UK. @ForWomenScot, I’m so proud to know you.”
She reportedly donated tens of thousands of pounds to back FWS’s work. The writer has been vocal in arguing that the rights for trans women should not come at the expense of those who are born biologically female.
Campaign group Sex Matters, which also made arguments in the case, said the court had given "the right answer".
Maya Forstater, the group's chief executive, said: "We are delighted that the Supreme Court has accepted the arguments of For Women Scotland and rejected the position of the Scottish Government.
"The court has given us the right answer: the protected characteristic of sex - male and female - refers to reality, not to paperwork."
But LGBT charity Stonewall said there is "deep concern" around the consequences of the Supreme Court ruling, which it said is "incredibly worrying for the trans community".
Chief executive Simon Blake added: "It's important to be reminded the court strongly and clearly reaffirmed the Equality Act protects all trans people against discrimination, based on gender reassignment, and will continue to do so.
The justices said transgender people are still protected from discrimination, and that "they would be able to invoke the provisions on direct discrimination and harassment, and indirect discrimination" if needed.
The matter first came to court in 2022 when FWS successfully challenged the Gender Representation on Public Boards (Scotland) Act 2018 over its inclusion of trans women in its definition of women.
The Court of Session ruled changing the definition of a woman in the Act was unlawful, as it dealt with matters falling outside the Scottish Parliament's legal competence.
Following the challenge, the Scottish Government dropped the definition from the Act and issued revised statutory guidance - essentially, advice on how to comply with the law, prompting further legal challenges from FWS.
