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EU forces Ukraine to legalize same-sex couples as condition for accession
The European Commission has made it clear that Ukraine must introduce legal recognition of same-sex couples if it wishes to advance toward full European Union membership. According to Ukrainian media reports published on February 20, 2026, Brussels raised the issue during discussions on Ukraine’s Rule of Law Roadmap, explicitly linking it to the country’s obligations under the “Fundamentals” negotiation cluster, particularly Chapter 23 on the judiciary and fundamental rights.
More: https://ifamnews.com/en/eu-forces-ukraine-to-legalize-same-sex-couples-as-condition-for-accession
UN experts call on the UK to ensure equal rights for women, girls, and transgender individuals
A group of UN experts on Friday called for the United Kingdom to guarantee that the current reviews of statutory guidance under the Equality Act 2010 align with international human rights standards and provide the equal enjoyment of rights for women and girls, including the transgender community.
The group of experts expressed appreciation of the government’s assurances that the legislative review would be conducted in a non-discriminatory manner, commenting, “The present review represents an important opportunity for the United Kingdom to reaffirm its long-standing commitment to equality, dignity and the rule of law, and to ensure that the human rights of all are upheld in practice.”
This new development comes amid a changing legal horizon characterized by years of intense litigation, a polarized social climate, and conflicting guidance from equality organizations regarding the intersection of gender identity and biological sex. In April 2025, the UK Supreme Court ruled in For Women Scotland v The Scottish Ministers that references to “sex,” “man,” and “woman” in the Equality Act 2010 refer to an individual’s biological sex. This means that the legal sex of transgender individuals, which is determined by their possession of a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC), is no longer considered their “sex” for the purposes of the Equality Act, rendering the marginalized community more vulnerable to exclusion from single-sex services and affecting their ability to challenge sex-based discrimination.
Following the 2025 ruling, organizations such as the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), the official regulator of the Equality Act 2010, began updating its guidelines to clarify that service providers were legally entitled to restrict access to single-sex spaces such as bathrooms based on biological sex. The interim guidance provided by the EHRC was challenged by the Good Law Project, which stated that it was legally flawed, a harmful interpretation of the Supreme Court ruling, and produced only nine days after the publication of the Supreme Court’s judgment, with minimal consultation on the issue sought.
The High Court dismissed the case on February 13, 2026, as it found that the Supreme Court’s ruling was properly applied and that the Good Law Project lacked the proper standing to bring the case, since it did not suffer direct harm as a result of the decision. In light of this, the group of UN experts pushed for the United Kingdom to ensure that the review process was inclusive and complied with international human rights frameworks such as Article 2(2) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), which prohibits discrimination based on gender identity.
The post UN experts call on the UK to ensure equal rights for women, girls, and transgender individuals appeared first on JURIST – News.
US State Department resumes HIV prevention program excluding LGBT+
The US Department of State has resumed HIV prevention services under the president’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) after a temporary suspension of US foreign assistance, according to reports Thursday. The resumption comes with a restriction: pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) will only be available to pregnant and breastfeeding women (PBFW), excluding LGBT+ individuals who are at high risk of HIV infection.
The February 10 PEPFAR Limited Waiver Approved Activities document states that: “People other than PBFW who may be at high risk of HIV infection or were previously initiated on a PrEP option cannot be offered PEPFAR-funded PrEP during this pause of U.S. Foreign Assistance or until further notice.” The restriction disproportionately impacts men who have sex with men and transgender individuals, populations that have historically faced higher rates of HIV transmission.
Human Rights Watch stated that even a temporary pause on PEPFAR programs could devastate vulnerable populations. Legal challenges have emerged in response to the freeze. On February 10, the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition (AVAC) and Journalism Development Network, Inc. sued Trump, alleging the freeze was illegal and unconstitutional. The next day, USAID contractors and non-governmental organizations filed a separate lawsuit, arguing that the freeze had already caused irreparable harm. A separate lawsuit, brought by a group of USAID employees, led a federal judge to issue an injunction on February 7, blocking the furloughing of USAID workers.
The post US State Department resumes HIV prevention program excluding LGBT+ appeared first on JURIST – News.
New SOGIESC publication: ‘Queering Courts’
The monograph ‘Queering Courts’ is now also available outside of the Low Countries through Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Queering-Courts-Analysing-marriage-European/dp/B0GK94TXKJ/ref=sr_1_1.
New SOGIESC publication: ‘Queering Courts’
With the use of queer legal theory, ‘Queering Courts’ analyses how courts such as the European Court of Human Rights, the Court of Justice of the European Union, and the United States Supreme Court interpret and apply the notions of ‘sex’, ‘gender’, ‘sexuality’ and ‘sexual orientation’ in their equal marriage rights case law.
The research reveals that courts interpret the notions as binary constructs with the dominance in the hierarchies commonly anchored on certain heteronormative beliefs. This results in the discrimination, non-inclusivity and ‘othering’ of all that do not fall within the dominant part of the hierarchies, making them thus ineligible to enjoy ‘full’ or ‘equal’ marriage rights. While the decision-making of the courts is influenced by factors such as history, culture, religion, politics, etc., judicial self-restraint is oftentimes exercised for credibility, legitimacy, and authority reasons. The research suggests that courts should ‘queer’ their approaches for more inclusive, diverse, and universal adjudication. Until then, the enjoyment of full equal marriage rights is only for the heterosexually privileged.
– Dr Alina Tryfonidou: “Queering Courts is an exceptional and timely contribution to the literature on the equal marriage rights of same-sex couples. Dr. Shahid offers a masterful and crystal-clear analysis of the jurisprudence of three major courts – the ECtHR, the CJEU and the US Supreme Court – engaging rigorously with their case law while illuminating, through the lens of queer legal theory, how these courts understand and deploy the concepts of sex, gender, sexuality and sexual orientation. Written in crisp, accessible language and grounded in original scholarly insight, this book provides a refreshing, innovative and genuinely enlightening perspective. A delight to read and a significant intervention in the field.”
Uganda court upholds ban on LGBTQI+ advocacy workshop
Advocates say the ruling threatens all freedom of speech and assembly in Uganda
More: https://76crimes.com/2026/02/18/uganda-court-upholds-ban-lgbtqi-workshop/
Gay FIFA director reports internal support and criticises calls to boycott the World Cup and countries with anti-LGBT laws
UK: Veterans threaten MoD with legal action over LGBT compensation scheme
| USA: Hundreds of federal surveys remove questions about sexual orientation and gender identity |
| On January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump issued an executive order stating that the federal government would no longer recognize transgender, nonbinary, and intersex people. Our new report finds that, following the order, approximately 360 federal data collections have removed at least one sexual orientation or gender identity (SOGI) measure in the past year. Of the 360 removals, 338 removed the option for people to indicate their gender identity. However, 60 data collections also removed sexual orientation data elements, even though the executive order did not require it.SOGI measures were removed from various federal data collections, including administrative surveys and national surveys such as the CDC’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. |
| The impact of removing anti-transgender violence data in the US |
| Our new study, published in LGBT Health, examines the impact of removing gender identity questions from the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), a nationally representative survey that tracks violent victimization in the U.S. Scholars explain why NCVS data matter and explore how eliminating gender identity measures will limit the ability of researchers, policymakers, advocates, and law enforcement to understand, monitor, and prevent violence against transgender people. |
US court rules HIV-positive people can be banned from military
More: https://www.thepinknews.com/2026/02/19/us-hiv-military-ban-irrational/
International and Comparative SOGIESC Law - Professor Andreas R Ziegler 