By Jyoti Jha
A former high-ranking staff member of the Trump administration, who has strong connections to extremist groups, has joined forces with the legal director of a feminist organization called the Women’s Liberation Front (Wolf). Together, they are partners in a Wisconsin law firm that focuses exclusively on anti-transgender litigation.
What are some of Bone LLP’s activities?
The law firm, known as Jackson Bone LLP, brings together Candice Jackson, who previously reduced protections for individuals reporting sexual assault on college campuses. Candice was previously working under Trump’s education secretary Betsy DeVos and Lauren Adams Bone, who created a “Women’s Bill of Rights” that has influenced laws targeting transgender people in several states.
Through their partnership and the ongoing cases they are handling, it becomes evident that far-right activists and those who oppose transgender rights are closely collaborating to wage legal battles against transgender individuals. This collaboration takes place through the enactment of laws and engaging in litigation.
When was Jackson Bone LLP established?
The law firm in question was established in September of last year, as recorded in Wisconsin company documents. The firm’s current cases, as listed on its website, focus on transgender rights or issues related to gender-affirming care for transgender individuals.
One of the ongoing cases, Chandler v California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, argues that California law (SB 132), which permits the transfer of transgender women, intersex individuals, and non-binary individuals to women’s correctional facilities, is unconstitutional. However, in this case, the complaint portrays transgender women prisoners as male rapists and rejects their transgender identities.
What are the opponents saying?
Lambda Legal, a legal nonprofit organization advocating for LGBTQ+ rights, along with the ACLU of Southern California, is part of a legal team representing a group of transgender women prisoners who want to make certain changes to this case.
Nora Huppert, an attorney at Lambda working on the case, stated that the Chandler complaint and the legal arguments that Wolf and their attorneys put forth are based entirely on distorted and sensationalized notions about incarcerated transgender women.
What are some related cases?
In another ongoing case, Kiefel v Ruff, Jackson Bone is suing two professional counselors and their employers in Oregon on behalf of a woman who had a double mastectomy as part of a gender transition that she later reversed. The complaint accuses the counselors of breaching their professional roles by recommending gender surgery to the plaintiff.
Both cases are sponsored by Wolf and receive significant promotion on the organization’s website. However, Jackson Bone’s activities extend beyond litigation. In January, they sent a letter of demand to the National College Athletics Association (NCAA), urging the exclusion of transgender women from women’s sports.
What is the current scenario?
Additionally, the firm’s website links to the 2022 “Women’s Bill of Rights,” which Lauren Bone co-authored during her previous role as the legal director of Wolf, in collaboration with members of the right-wing Independent Women’s Forum (IWF).
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