[JURIST] A divided US Supreme Court [official website] on Wednesday granted [order, PDF] an application to recall and stay lower court orders allowing a transgender student who identifies as a male to use the men’s restroom in school. This comes after the Gloucester County School Board filed an emergency application [JURIST report] to block the lower court decisions. Many believe [WSJ article] the court’s choice to stay the lower court decisions signals the Supreme Court will take on the case on the merits later next year.

Gavin Grimm, a high school student at a Gloucester County school who identifies as male, was granted an order [JURIST report] by the district court in June allowing him to use the boys’ restroom while the court considers the legal issues of the case. This order came after a decision by the federal court in April, which reversed a lower court decision in holding Grimm’s rights under Title IX [official website], which prohibits discrimination in schools, were violated by the school board refusing his use of the men’s restroom. It was at that time the Gloucester County School Board first stated its intention to ask the US Supreme Court to review the Fourth Circuit decision.