The Trump administration’s fight to keep biological males out of girls’ sports suffered a California court setback Monday — but the Justice Department is gearing up for the next round.
US District Judge Cynthia Valenzuela, a Democrat, dismissed the DOJ’s lawsuit challenging California’s policy allowing transgender girls to compete on girls’ school teams, leaving the state’s controversial rules in place.
The ruling, however, was not a finding that California’s policy is required by Title IX.
Instead, Valenzuela dismissed the case after determining that the federal government had not adequately notified California that its federal funding could be jeopardized if schools continued allowing transgender girls to compete on girls’ teams.
For the Trump administration, that leaves the central battle over girls’ sports unresolved.
The DOJ said Tuesday it is considering an appeal.
“We are disappointed by the Court’s order and remain committed to enforcing President Trump’s agenda of preventing boys from playing in girls’ sports.”
A department spokesperson said the DOJ is “evaluating our options for appeal.”
The DOJ lawsuit was spearheaded by two longtime critics of the state’s transgender-student policies: Harmeet Dhillon, the Trump administration’s Civil Rights Division chief, and Bill Essayli, who is currently leading the US attorney’s office in Los Angeles.
California has allowed transgender students to participate in sports consistent with their gender identity since 2013 under AB 1266.
Republican lawmakers, the Alliance Defending Freedom, Concerned Women for America and other conservative advocates argue that allowing transgender girls to compete against biological females undermines the purpose of Title IX.
They say female athletes face an uneven playing field, safety concerns and the loss of opportunities, including athletic scholarships.
The California case is unfolding against a rapidly changing legal backdrop.
Just two months before Valenzuela’s ruling, the US Supreme Court’s conservative majority upheld Republican-backed laws in West Virginia and Idaho that bar transgender girls from girls’ teams.
Valenzuela emphasized that the Supreme Court’s ruling was narrow.
The justices allowed those states to maintain their restrictions but did not order every school in the country to adopt the same policy.
The Supreme Court also did not establish a nationwide ban on transgender youth competing in sports or settle whether Title IX permits transgender girls to compete on girls’ teams.
Meanwhile, the California controversy has thrust individual high school athletes into the middle of the fight over girls’ athletics.
AB Hernandez, a transgender student-athlete at Jurupa Valley High School, dominated several girls’ events during the May 2026 CIF State Track and Field Championships and section finals.
Athena Ryan of Sonoma Academy finished second in the girls’ 1,600-meter race at the CIF North Coast Section finals in Santa Rosa in 2023 before withdrawing from the state finals amid protests.
Lorelei Barrett of the Buckley School qualified for the girls’ 1,600-meter state championship after competing at the CIF Southern Section prelims in Los Angeles, but withdrew amid intense backlash.
