U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Idaho’s Fairness in Women’s Sports Act, Sides with AG Labrador

BOISE, ID - The U.S. Supreme Court today upheld Idaho's Fairness in Women's Sports Act, ruling that schools may determine eligibility for women's and girls' sports based on biological sex without violating Title IX or the Equal Protection Clause. Attorney General Raúl Labrador's office successfully defended the law before the Court in January. The 6-3 decision confirms that Idaho, along with the 26 other states with similar laws, may keep women's and girls' sports teams reserved for biological females.

"Today's decision is a victory for common sense, fairness, and the countless girls and women who dedicate themselves to athletics," said Attorney General Labrador."Idaho led the nation by becoming the first state to protect women's sports, and I've never wavered in defending that law. The Supreme Court has now confirmed that states can preserve fair competition and protect the opportunities that generations of women fought to secure. Every parent can rest assured that our law protects their daughters competing in Idaho."

Idaho enacted the Fairness in Women's Sports Act in 2020 as the first law of its kind in the nation. The legislation requires that public athletic teams, such as high schools and universities, designated for females be based on biological sex at birth. The ACLU sued immediately and lower courts blocked enforcement from the day the law passed. When Attorney General Labrador took office in January 2023, he made defending the law a top priority, and requested that the U.S. Supreme Court review the case. The Court agreed to hear the case in July 2025, consolidating it with a similar case from West Virginia. Oral arguments were held January 13, 2026.

Writing for the majority, Justice Kavanaugh held that Title IX's reference to "sex" means biological sex, and that its regulations have permitted schools to maintain separate sex-specific teams since 1975. On the constitutional claim, the Court held that the State's interests in safety and competitive fairness are substantially related to limiting women's and girls' teams to biological females, and that states are not required to grant individual exceptions for biological males who identify as female.

Since taking office, Attorney General Labrador has made protecting women and girls a defining priority of his tenure, successfully defending Idaho's laws at every level of the federal court system.