Loe v. Texas FAQ

UPDATE AS OF FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2024 at 10am CT

The Supreme Court of Texas ruled against PFLAG National, Texas families with transgender youth, three healthcare providers who treat youth with gender dysphoria, and GLMA, holding that SB14, the discriminatory and dangerous law that prohibits the provision of gender affirming medical care to minors, is constitutional under the Texas Constitution. The Court overturned a Travis County District Court ruling blocking the law, and held that the legislature was within its authority to ban this care.

What does this ruling mean for PFLAG v. Abbott, the case challenging the DFPS child abuse rule?

In the immediate term, the Court’s decision in Loe v. Texas does not change anything regarding child abuse investigations. The injunctions that protect PFLAG members from being investigated for child abuse relating to allegations that they are providing their children with gender affirming medical care remain in place. The Court of Appeals affirmed those injunctions in March 2024. Although the State may try to use the Loe v. Texas decision as part of its defense of the child abuse directive, the injunctions remain in place until a court explicitly rules otherwise.

What does this ruling mean for transgender youth in Texas?

SB14 went into effect in September 2023, so this ruling does not change the current state of the law. The law prohibits certain medical treatments for adolescents for gender dysphoria. The law does not prohibit mental health treatment, such as counseling. And the law does not apply to adults over age 18.

What is Loe v. Texas case about?

Lambda Legal, the ACLU, the ACLU of Texas, and Transgender Law Center, along with the law firms Scott, Douglass & McConnico LLP and Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP, sued the State of Texas to block SB14, the state’s discriminatory ban on medical care for transgender youth.

SB14 prohibits medical professionals from providing necessary and life-saving medical treatments for gender dysphoria to Texas’s transgender adolescents, strips adolescents of the medically necessary care they have already been or were planning to soon be receiving, threatens the licenses of physicians providing the established standard of care to their transgender patients, and bars the payment of state dollars, including state-funded health insurance plans and Medicaid, to any health care entity providing or facilitating that care.

Who are the plaintiffs?

PFLAG National was proud to serve as a plaintiff in this case on behalf of our members in Texas, alongside GLMA (Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ+ Equality); five families from across the state with transgender children and adolescents; and Doctors Richard Ogden Roberts III, David L. Paul, and Patrick O’Malley, who treat transgender youth with gender dysphoria.

What was the timeline for this case?

The original petition was filed on July 12, 2023, along with a request for a temporary injunction to put the law on hold before it could go into effect on September 1, 2023. After a two-day hearing in mid-August, the Travis County District Court issued an injunction on August 25, 2023. The State filed an appeal immediately, which, under Texas rules, automatically put the injunction on hold. Our lawyers filed an emergency motion on August 28, 2023, asking the Texas Supreme Court to reissue the injunction to restrain the State from enforcing SB14 while the Court considered the State’s appeal. Unfortunately, the Texas Supreme Court denied that request on August 31, allowing SB14 to take effect on September 1, 2023. On January 30, 3024, the Texas Supreme Court heard our case and our lawyers argued for the injunction to be put back in place. On Friday, June 28, 2024, the Texas Supreme Court reversed the trial court’s injunction, leaving the law in effect.

Has the TX AG’s office tried to get information from PFLAG National outside the ordinary course of litigation?

Yes. On February 9, 2024, PFLAG National received a “civil investigative demand” (CID) from the Texas Attorney General’s Office. The CID demands that PFLAG National produce documents and written testimony related to PFLAG National CEO Brian Bond’s declaration from our case against SB 14. The CID is an inappropriate attempt to get around the time frames and protections that apply in the normal discovery process in Loe v. Texas. To that end, we are fighting this CID in Court.

In February 2024, PFLAG v. Office of the Attorney General of the State of Texas was filed in Travis County District Court. In this case, PFLAG National is asking for a temporary restraining order regarding responding to the CID. Although the cases are related, this is a different case from Loe v. Texas. This case only involves the Civil Investigative Demand. The attorneys who represent us in the SB14 case are representing PFLAG National here. These include Lambda Legal, the ACLU, the ACLU of Texas, and the Transgender Law Center, along with the law firm of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP.

How do I stay up to date on what is happening in this new case?

PFLAG National will continue to send updates about this case as well as Loe v. Texas.

Why is PFLAG National a plaintiff in Loe v. Texas?

Every person, transgender or not, does better when they can get the health care they need when they need it. PFLAG National sued to block SB 14 and stop it from depriving transgender adolescents of access to medically necessary, evidence-based medical care.

Why isn’t PFLAG National taking legal action in my home state?

This is a time of unprecedented attacks on our community, with 82 anti-trans and anti-LGBTQ+ laws passing in states around the country this year alone. There simply is not capacity at this particular moment to challenge each and every one of these laws in court because of the volume of these discriminatory laws.

This does not mean your state and your community are being left behind. There are many lawsuits happening across the country as legal advocates work strategically to fend off these attacks on transgender kids, their families, and their healthcare and ensure the best possible outcomes for everyone. The legal strategies for fighting those laws vary based on a huge number of factors, but the goal of every one of those lawsuits is to prevent and minimize the harm these kids will experience no matter the odds.

PFLAG National does not independently decide where to bring suit but, instead, works with legal advocates as they begin to consider the strategies. For more information about particular lawsuits, we encourage you to reach out to the legal advocates for further support. These include Lambda Legal, the ACLU at the national and state levels, and Trasngender Law Center.

PFLAG National plays a critical role in supporting and protecting those families, regardless of whether the organization formally serves as a plaintiff in litigation in any given state.

What does it mean to be a member of PFLAG National?

Being a member of PFLAG National is ultimately about leading with love, for yourself, for your family, and for the LGBTQ+ community. PFLAG supports families, educates allies, and advocates for equality through a vast network of supporters, members, and chapters across the country, including 18 chapters in Texas. People who join PFLAG National enjoy the community of participating in local meetings and events, educational opportunities, Pride celebrations, workshops, panels, family programming and so much more.

PFLAG National members have joined and paid dues either to their local PFLAG chapter or directly to PFLAG National; both of these make you a member of PFLAG National.

How do I become a member of PFLAG National?

PFLAG is for LGBTQ+ people, their parents, families, and allies. All families in Texas that include transgender loved ones in particular are encouraged to join PFLAG National, through one of two ways:

1. You can join your local chapter in Texas by paying their membership fee, part of which will come to PFLAG National and make you a member of both the national organization and your local chapter; or
2. You can join PFLAG National directly.

Visit pflag.org/become-a-member to learn more about both options and choose which is right for you. Have questions? Reach out to us at [email protected].

I do not have the personal means to pay for a PFLAG National or PFLAG chapter membership. Is there financial support for me to join? And if so, how do I access that support?

We are happy to work with families on a case-by-case basis to ensure they are able to become PFLAG members. Please contact us at [email protected] for support.

If I am a parent of a trans kid in Texas and a member of my local PFLAG chapter, is my family covered by this case?

PFLAG National is now involved in three Texas lawsuits.

The first, PFLAG v. Abbott, shields PFLAG National members from baseless child abuse investigations related to having a trans kid. If you are a dues-paying member of a local chapter in Texas, part of your dues are paid to PFLAG National, thereby making you a member of both the local chapter and PFLAG National. Your membership means that you are covered by the injunction in place.

The second, Loe v. Texas, was seeking to block SB14 statewide. On June 28, 2024, the Texas Supreme Court ruled SB14 constitutional under the Texas Constitution, leaving SB14 in effect.

Finally, in PFLAG v. Office of the Attorney General of the State of Texas, PFLAG National is suing on behalf of itself and its members to seek relief from the Texas Attorney General’s Office’s civil investigative demand.