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Updates on Cruz v. Zucker

On October 17, SRLP joined our co-counsel the Legal Aid Society and Willkie Farr & Gallagher at the oral argument in our lawsuit Cruz v. Zucker. If you weren’t able to attend the oral argument, check out this court transcript.

SRLP was delighted to work with community in order to ensure that class members could safely attend the oral argument. We are so glad to every one of you who was able to show up, thank you.

SRLP particularly applauds Arthur Biller of Willkie Farr & Gallagher, who represented us in the oral argument, for raising that trans youth in New York state need health care now and should not be made to delay medically necessary treatment due to state bureaucracy. A portion of the transcript is below:

“The harm that the class members are suffering is a real and grave harm. As our experts have shown and other documentary evidence that’s in the record [shows], this is a condition where [untreated] people are subject to severe emotional and psychological distress. They are subject to discrimination. The minors are subject to bullying at school. School is in session now. It goes so far as suicide, and the suicide rates are rather staggering among this population. So for [the State] to say, let’s just wait it out, this population has already been waiting. They’ve been waiting the 2 1/2 years that this case has been pending, they’ve been waiting since 1998 when the ban was first put in place. I don’t see any reason on this record to continue that waiting.”

Judge Rakoff indicated that a bottom-line decision should be expected by Monday October 24.

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