By Christine Chen
SYDNEY, May 15 (Reuters) - An Australian court upheld a landmark decision for a transgender woman on Friday, ruling that her exclusion from a female-only app because she appeared to be a man amounted to an act of discrimination.
The Full Federal Court of Australia also doubled damages against the Giggle for Girls app and its founder and CEO, Sall Grover, saying that the blocking of transgender woman Roxanne Tickle's account was direct discrimination.
A lower court had found in 2024 that it was an act of indirect discrimination. That finding was hailed as a groundbreaking decision on gender identity and transgender rights in Australia.
"I'm very pleased by the outcome of my case, and I hope that it assists trans and gender diverse people and their loved ones to heal," Tickle told reporters outside the courthouse.
"I've brought my case to show trans people that you can be brave and that you can stand up for yourself. In the process, I surprised myself at how brave I could be," she said.
TRANS PROTECTIONS AFFIRMED
The decision represents a significant affirmation of protections for trans people, said Alice Taylor, an assistant professor of law at Bond University.
The court has made clear that the Australia's Sex Discrimination Act "is intended to eliminate discrimination on the basis of gender identity, and that this protection should be applied as broadly as possible."
Tickle, who was born male but is recognised as female in an updated birth certificate following gender affirming surgery, was blocked because Grover reviewed her photograph, a requirement upon registration, and concluded she was a man.
Lawyers for Grover did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Grover has argued sex at birth is immutable and unlawful discrimination did not occur. The Federal Court in 2024 found that "sex is changeable".
Grover appealed and Tickle also cross-appealed, seeking a declaration of direct discrimination and greater damages.
In a summary judgment read in court, Justice Melissa Perry said Giggle and Grover had treated Tickle "less favourably than a woman designated female at birth." All three judges hearing the case ruled that there had been direct discrimination.
Giggle and Grover have been ordered to pay Tickle A$20,000 ($14,350) as well as her legal costs.
The judges also agreed with the lower court that the app, which markets itself as a safe online space for women, did not qualify as a "special measure" under the Sex Discrimination Act intended to promote equality between men and women.
($1 = 1.3926 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Christine Chen in Sydney; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
