Transgender weightlifter’s bias case heads back to Minnesota court

A Ramsey County District Court needs to reconsider whether USA Powerlifting violated the Minnesota Human Rights Act when it barred a transgender woman from competition.

In a split ruling released Monday, the Minnesota Court of Appeals said a trial was needed to determine if the nation’s leading drug-tested powerlifting organization discriminated against JayCee Cooper because she is transgender.

The decision overturns a Ramsey County District Court judge who ruled last year there was enough evidence to show discrimination without the case going to trial.

USA Powerlifting (USAPL) has argued it barred Cooper from a competition because she went through puberty as a male and had a physiological advantage over other female competitors.

Jess Braverman, legal director for Gender Justice, which is helping to represent Cooper, said they are considering an appeal of Monday’s decision because the facts of the case are clear.

“We want folks to know it is illegal in the state of Minnesota to discriminate against transgender people,” Braverman said.

Cooper filed a complaint with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights in 2019 after she was not allowed to participate in a women’s bench press competition. She had applied for a waiver from the organization’s drug-free policy while taking spironolactone, which lowers the amount of testosterone in the body.

On its website, USAPL says testosterone and other drugs used to assist in transitioning are not allowed. The organization also bars males who transitioned to females because it “compromises fair play,” the organization’s website said.

USA Powerlifting could not be reached for comment Monday.

In 2021, Cooper filed a lawsuit under the Minnesota Human Rights Act alleging USAPL discriminated against her based on her sex and sexual orientation.

In 2023, a Ramsey County District Court judge ruled on a pretrial motion that USAPL discriminated against Cooper because she is transgender. It ordered USAPL to revise its policies for transgender competitors. The organization appealed.

The Appeals Court ruling released Monday found a trial is needed to determine if there is enough evidence to prove USA Powerlifting barred Cooper from competition because of her sexual orientation, which is defined by statute to include transgender status.

In a dissenting opinion, Appeals Court Judge Jennifer Frisch said it was clear Cooper was discriminated against because she is transgender. “This matter involves undisputed direct evidence of public accommodations discrimination,” Frisch wrote.