Gender

Dr Michael Foran responds to a critique of his commentary on some upcoming cases. Robin White has kindly offered a response to a recent article I wrote about two upcoming cases concerning the meaning of sex within the Equality Act. I welcome the caution concerning the dangers of analysing the law fr

Russia is to prohibit all forms of gender transition, with allies of President Putin arguing the move is necessary to safeguard the nation against "western anti-family ideology". A bill approved in its initial reading by lawmakers in the Duma will forbid “medical interventions aimed at changin

My previous two opinion pieces about the damaging delay to Scottish gender recognition reform, and the media’s portrayal of it, were underpinned factually by the relevant parts of the Equality Act. Given the ongoing widescale coverage of gender recognition reform, and trans rights, it might be

The UK government has availed itself of section 35 of the Scotland Act to stop Holyrood's Gender Recognition Reform Bill from receiving Royal Assent. Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said he would use section 35 following a review of the bill by UK government lawyers. UK ministers are concerned the b

The first casualty of the gender recognition regime is freedom of speech, writes barrister Naomi Cunningham. Section 29(2)(d) of the Scotland Act 1998 provides that an Act of the Scottish Parliament is not law so far is it is incompatible with any of the Convention rights. The UK government may not

Former Dean of Faculty and Advocate General of Scotland, Lord Keen of Elie KC, has suggested that UK ministers should block Scotland's Gender Recognition Reform Bill. The Conservative peer urged the UK government to consider availing itself of section 35 of the Scotland Act 1998.

The International Bar Association (IBA) has launched a toolkit to "empower female legal professionals". Research by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) shows that gender disparity in world societies and labour markets has a $12 trillion impact on the global economy. Thi

The Scottish government has paid For Women Scotland (FWS) £147,500 after the group won a case against ministers earlier this year. The government had attempted to redefine “woman” in the Gender Representation on Public Boards (Scotland) Act 2018 and allow transgender women to occup

The lives of women and girls in Afghanistan are being devastated by the Taliban’s crackdown on their human rights, Amnesty International has said in a new report. Since they took control of the country in August 2021, the Taliban have violated women’s and girls’ rights to education

A fresh legal case on the definition of 'woman' is being brought against the Scottish government on the basis it has failed to comply with an order of the Court of Session made in an earlier case. For Women Scotland is seeking judicial review of the Scottish government's statutory guidance on the Ge

New research into the gender pay gap in the legal profession has found 84 per cent of women in law believe they won’t see true gender pay equality in their working life, while 29 per cent said it won’t happen in the next 100 years. Over half (54 per cent) of female legal professionals be

Two "equality experts" specialising in women’s representation and participation, and labour market equality will take forward the next phase of work to "realise gender equality" in Scotland. Talat Yaqoob, co-founder of Women 5050, the national campaign for fair representation of women in polit

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has written to the Scottish government, warning it against simplifying the legal requirements for gender recognition. LGBT+ equality campaigners said the EHRC's approach was “deeply troubling” and that it was “failing to stand up for equalit

Gender inequality and improving women’s experiences within the justice system will be addressed by a new Scottish government panel. Members will examine the experiences of women as both victims and offenders in a range of settings including policing, community justice, criminal and civil court

A petition seeking judicial review of guidance accompanying the sex question on the Scottish census will be heard by the Court of Session next month. Fair Play For Women is instructing Dean of Faculty, Roddy Dunlop QC, in the case.