[JURIST] Following a landmark settlement allowing transgender inmates to receive sex-reassignment surgery [LAT report], California prison officials on Tuesday announced [AP report] the criteria inmates must meet to qualify for the surgery. Seeking to standardize the process, California prison officials will require that mental health professionals refer the inmates for surgery, that the inmates are diagnosed with gender dysphoria, that they exhibit desire to have the surgery for at least two years, and that they live as the preferred gender for at least 12 months. These are the first such guidelines in a US prison system.

Transgender rights remain a controversial issue throughout the world. Last month attorneys for a Maryland transgender inmate who had been subject to harsh prison conditions said that their client had won relief under the Prison Rape Elimination Act [JURIST report], marking the first such successful challenge. US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter in July announced [JURIST report] a comprehensive plan to move in the direction of allowing transgender troops to serve in the military. Also in July Ireland passed the Gender Recognition Bill [JURIST report] to allow transgender people over 18 legal recognition of their preferred gender and changes in their birth certificate. In November Malaysia’s Court of Appeals in Putrajaya struck down [JURIST report] an anti-crossdressing law in a challenge filed by three transgender women. In May 2013 Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal ruled [JURIST report] that a law prohibiting a transgender woman from marrying her boyfriend was invalid under the Chinese constitution. Canadian lawmakers approved a bill [JURIST report] in March of 2013 that would outlaw discrimination against transgender individuals.