Trump-Dominated Appeals Court Rules Misgendering Professor Can Sue University

An appeals court dominated by appointees from the Trump administration has ruled a professor sanctioned for intentionally misgendering students can sue his university. An Ohio district court had previously ruled that philosophy professor Nicholas Meriwether lacked standing to sue Shawnee State University.

Meriwether says he complained in 2016 when the small university decided students’ expressed gender should be respected, telling administrators it went against his Christian beliefs. Two years later, when a student approached him after class, asking to be called by preferred pronouns, Meriwether refused.

The school administration tried to reach a compromise with him, and Meriwether says he was willing to refer to the student only by her chosen name. When the student continued filing complaints against Meriwether during the semester, however, a Title IX investigation was initiated.

The Title IX office found that Meriwether had created a “hostile environment,” with the dean recommending an official warning for his file. If Meriwether persisted, he could face suspension without pay or termination.

“[I cannot] speak in such a way that implies that a man is a woman or a woman a man,” Meriwether wrote in an opinion piece for The Hill. “In other words, to refer to a student in such a way that I imply something that is not true, that I know to be false, to effectively lie, and so violate my conscience as a philosopher and as a Christian.”

While the ensuing lawsuit was initially dismissed, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has returned Meriwether to the lower courts to argue that his rights had been violated.

"Traditionally, American universities have been beacons of intellectual diversity and academic freedom," Judge Amul Thapar wrote. "They have prided themselves on being forums where controversial ideas are discussed and debated. And they have tried not to stifle debate by picking sides."

Judge Thapar, a Donald Trump appointee, was joined by Judges David McKeague and Joan Larsen. The two judges were appointed by George W. Bush and Trump, respectively.

Shawnee State University, which is located in Portsmouth, Ohio, just north of the Kentucky border, declined to comment on ongoing litigation but did confirm that Meriwether was still employed as a professor.

The case comes amid a wave of legislation targeting transgender communities. Ohio is among the states currently considering bills to force athletes to compete in leagues based on their gender assigned at birth.