Trump officials were so extreme in transgender health case that a Texas judge hit pausehttps://www.advocate.com/politics/national/ftc-judge-shopping-wpath-backfires 🔗Christopher Wiggins (4 July 2026)
A federal judge in Texas has paused consideration of an emergency request in the Trump administration's lawsuit against the World Professional Association for Transgender Health after an unusual confrontation between two federal courts over where the fight should proceed, Law Dork first reported.
U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor, a George W. Bush appointee in the Northern District of Texas, canceled a July 7 hearing on the Federal Trade Commission's request and said he would wait for Chief Judge James Boasberg of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to rule first in WPATH's related D.C. lawsuit challenging the FTC's earlier investigative demand.
The move is striking because O'Connor has been receptive to conservative legal challenges, including cases targeting LGBTQ+ protections and federal health policy. This time, however, he slowed the administration's attempt to limit WPATH's ability to seek relief in another federal court.
Boasberg was sharply critical of the administration's motives. In the WPATH case, he wrote that the record "strongly suggests that the CID was issued at least in part because of hostility toward WPATH's viewpoint and advocacy regarding transgender care." He also cited "extensive evidence of animus" and "wafer-thin justifications lacking evidentiary support."
