WASHINGTON — The Washington Attorney General’s Office has announced that it has hired an outside law firm to defend Initiative 638.
I-638 was passed by 57% of voters this election. It calls for sex verification of girls hoping to play sports in school.
The initiative drew debate on both sides. Supporters said that allowing trans athletes to participate in girls’ sports gives them an unfair advantage. Opponents argue the initiative violates Title IX and is medically inappropriate.
Several school districts and human rights organizations have authorized legal action or have already filed lawsuits over the initiative.
In response, Attorney General Nick Brown said that he has hired an outside firm to represent Washington in these suits.
“One of the most important duties of the Attorney General’s Office is to ensure that laws passed by the Legislature or by the voters through initiative are vigorously defended. I am deeply committed to that principle and my professional and ethical responsibilities as Washington’s chief legal officer,” Brown wrote.
Brown and his office have publicly supported and done work to aid in the protection of transgender Washingtonians.
“My personal views do not dictate what laws get defended or the strength of that defense,” Brown said.
“We have brought and won important cases against the federal government to protect access to vital healthcare services, and we have vigorously defended state laws that give transgender people equal protection under Washington law. We will not and cannot abandon that work. And while voters have passed a law changing our state’s approach to school sports, many other laws remain on the books that protect the rights of transgender people in a wide range of contexts,” he continued.
His office hired Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner to defend the initiative on behalf of Washington state.
“Appointing outside counsel—known as a Special Assistant Attorney General—is a common step we take when our office cannot handle a case ourselves, whether because of a conflict of interest, a need for specialized expertise, or simply because of workload,” Brown wrote.
“My highest obligation is to Washingtonians, and I am confident that this approach best respects their will,” Brown said, while also writing that his office will continue “other important work defending transgender rights.”
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