Lawyers from Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative Christian legal advocacy group, have been working alongside the state solicitor generals who are defending the Idaho and West Virginia bans on transgender athletes in women’s sports.
The Arizona-based group, known as A.D.F., which began as a legal-defense fund for conservative Christian causes, has become a familiar litigant at the Supreme Court in recent years. After President Trump’s re-election, the group’s chief executive, Kristen Waggoner, called his victory a “rebuke to progressive ideology,” adding that A.D.F. was “made for this moment” to “reclaim the truths and freedoms that made the West truly great.”
Lawyers for A.D.F. have already appeared before the justices twice this term, which began in October. They represented a Colorado therapist who challenged a state law restricting conversion therapy. They also represented a faith-based pregnancy center that is fighting a subpoena issued by the New Jersey attorney general’s office that sought the identity of its donors as part of a larger investigation into whether nonprofits had misled potential donors. A.D.F. argued the subpoena violated the center’s First Amendment rights.
In the transgender athlete arguments on Tuesday, A.D.F. also represents a classmate of Becky Pepper-Jackson, who has sued the state of West Virginia over a law banning her from girls’ sports. The classmate, a 17-year-old girl, Adaleia Cross, said in a filing to the justices that she became discouraged after Ms. Pepper-Jackson took “her spot” in a 2023 sports competition.
Ms. Cross, who initially beat Ms. Pepper-Jackson but later was beaten by her, also said that Ms. Pepper-Jackson made vulgar remarks in the middle school locker room that caused her to be fearful.
Ms. Cross and her family declined to be interviewed but have shared their stories on a website maintained by A.D.F. Ms. Pepper-Jackson has denied the accusation. An investigation by the girls’ school found “could not be substantiated,” according to a letter from the school system’s lawyer reviewed by The New York Times.
The allegations by Ms. Cross were presented for the first time in Supreme Court filings, not in litigation in the lower courts. It’s unclear what the justices will make of those allegations or what role they will play in the argument, particularly since the Supreme Court is focused on legal issues, not on fact-finding.
Abbie VanSickle covers the United States Supreme Court for The Times. She is a lawyer and has an extensive background in investigative reporting.
The post A.D.F., a Christian conservative legal organization, is assisting Idaho and West Virginia. appeared first on New York Times.
