On March 6, 2026, oral arguments were held in the Ninth Circuit Court in Seattle in the DOJ’s attempt to obtain extensive and sensitive patient and practice data from us.
Quick History of our case against the DOJ:
- June 2025: The DOJ serves us (and approximately 20 other providers of gender affirming care) with subpoenas demanding extensive amounts of patient and administrative data.
- July 2025: We sued to quash that subpoena (quash = stop the data demand).
- October 2025: The District Court of Western Washington ruled in our favor: we won! We did not need to provide the DOJ with any data and we have not provided the DOJ with any data.
- November 2025: The DOJ appealed our case to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (this is the federal appeals system that could lead to our case being heard at the Supreme Court).
- March 2025: Oral arguments were held in the DOJ’s appeal of our case.
At the oral arguments, a panel of three judges listened to the DOJ attorney present their case, then to our attorney presenting our case, then the DOJ attorney had a short period to rebut. Judges asked questions throughout.
What Happens Next?
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals panel of judges that heard our case makes a decision. This could take up to a year.
The decisions could be:
- The Circuit Court upholds the District Court’s opinion and indicates that they believe the District Court’s ruling was the correct interpretation of the law.
- The Circuit Court overturns the District Court’s opinion and decides that they believe the District Court’s ruling was an incorrect interpretation of the law.
- Somewhere in between.
- The Circuit Court could remand the case back to the District Court for further review.
- The Circuit Court decides that they want to hear the case “en banc” : this means that all of the judges of the Ninth Circuit Court will review the case (there are 29).
- The case could be appealed further: next stop is asking the Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari. A writ of certiorari asks the Supreme Court to agree to review the case.
Want To Watch or Listen To the Oral Arguments?
You can listen to or watch the oral arguments via the archived recordings at:
- Video (YouTube).
- Download the audio file.
Our case is the last 42 minutes of the files.
Some Press on the DOJ’s Appeal
- Stat News: In its campaign against gender-affirming care, Trump administration seeks to clear a big legal hurdle
- Autonomy News: https://www.autonomynews.co/doj-off-label-prescriptions-gender-affirming-care-subpoena-abortion-pills/
What Do We Do While We Wait?
We continue providing medically-necessary, evidence-based, life-saving healthcare endorsed by the American Medical Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, The Endocrine Society, The Pediatric Endocrine Society, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American College of Physicians, American Osteopathic Association, American Psychiatric Association and American Public Health Association.
Previous Blogs About The Subpoena and Our Case
- QueerDoc vs. The DOJ Subpoena: The DOJ Has Appealed (2/16/26)
- Legal Challenges To Trump Administration Attacks on Youth Gender Care (2025-2026)
- We Fought Back — And We Won.