Seamus Johnston, who was born a female, lived as a male after enrolling at the University of Pittsburgh.
The decision comes in the case of an expelled University of Pittsburgh student who was born female and identifies as male but never changed the gender listed in university records.
U.S. District Judge Kim Gibson dismissed a Section 1983 and Title IX suit against the university by Seamus Johnston.
Gibson acknowledged that “society’s view of gender, gender identity, sex and sexual orientation have significantly evolved in recent years” and said that “the legal landscape is transforming as it relates to gender identity, sexual orientation and similar issues, especially in the context of providing expanded legal rights.”
Even so, Gibson said, any changes in existing federal law are up to Congress, not the courts.
According to the decision, Johnston was born a female and listed that gender on his university application but “consistently lived as male” after enrolling in 2009. The university changed his name in its school records but refused to change the gender marker on his records.
Johnston initially used the men’s locker room without incident until officials told him he couldn’t do so unless university records were officially changed following either a court order or a new birth certificate.
