Profile avatar
michaelpforan.bsky.social
Lecturer in public law at Glasgow University | Interested in equality law + constitutional theory | "Equality Before the Law" Out now | “Sex, Gender Identity and the Law” coming soon. Substack: https://knowingius.org/
145 posts 2,734 followers 547 following
Regular Contributor
Active Commenter
Posts 21 Comments 29

The central claim being brought by Peggie in this case is that she was subject to an unlawful detriment by being required to undress in front of a man. Some might not consider it polite to refer to trans women as men but you can’t fairly adjudicate this case if you force her to call Dr Upton a woman

submitted 24 days ago • 2 comments

In the next few months, we will see several cases asking whether the provision of communal mixed-sex toilet and changing facilities constitutes sex discrimination against women. In this post I explore whether this amounts to direct sex discrimination. knowingius.org/p/when-are-m...

submitted 46 days ago • 0 comments

🎬 LEGAL PHILOSOFLICKS 🎬 Imaginary movies adapted from jurisprudence books Brought to you by Procrastination Inc. On Bluesky only *Day 1* Some of you may already be familiar with Christopher Nolan's upcoming Dworkin duology.

submitted 60 days ago • 8 comments

This is excellent.

submitted 57 days ago • 1 comment

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has released an updated draft Code of Practice for consultation. The deadline for responses is tomorrow. Here is my response, focusing on the law relating to sex and gender reassignment: knowingius.org/p/response-t...

submitted 57 days ago • 0 comments

Delighted to see my article on the meaning of sex in law has now been published by Law Quarterly Review. If you’d like to read a preprint of it, it’s available here: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

submitted 58 days ago • 3 comments

The Crown Prosecution Service has released updated guidance on sexual offences arising as a result of deception as to one's natal sex. I think the guidance is very muddled in places because it runs together sex and gender identity unnecessarily. knowingius.org/p/new-guidan...

submitted 64 days ago • 0 comments

Sex Matters in the Supreme Court: An analysis of the oral submissions from Ben Cooper KC on behalf of Sex Matters on the issue of "what is a woman" for the purposes of the Equality Act. knowingius.org/p/sex-matter...

submitted 71 days ago • 0 comments

Professor Lester has now done a hit piece on me on his blog, which is entirely comprised of a long ad hominem attack on my moral character and academic career, walking that fine line between libel and malicious insinuation. Sad!

submitted 72 days ago • 5 comments

Anurag Deb: The language of laws: Situating legislative drafting in its proper context ukconstitutionallaw.org/2024/12/16/a...

submitted 74 days ago • 0 comments

If you’ve been following the news about the ban on puberty blockers and would like to read about the failed legal challenge to the temporary version of the ban, you can do so here: knowingius.org/p/transactua...

submitted 78 days ago • 1 comment

Bailey v Stonewall is going to the Court of Appeal. This case has the potential to expose EDI training groups to significant liability if their training causes, induces, or instructs employers or other duty-bearers to unlawfully discriminate: knowingius.org/p/bailey-v-s...

submitted 79 days ago • 0 comments

Last week the Supreme Court heard oral submissions from For Women Scotland on why the definition of 'woman' in the Equality Act must be tied to biology, not certificates. My thoughts plus a transcript of the interventions from the bench is available here: knowingius.org/p/for-women-...

submitted 84 days ago • 0 comments

S55, subsections (4)-(7) of PACE make it clear that intimate searches can be carried out by constables of the same sex as the person being searched should the tests in s55(4) and s55(5) be met. This account is a troll account and is not officially associated with the Police in any capacity.

submitted 94 days ago • 1 comment

I would like to make it clear that I am not representing For Women Scotland in next week's Supreme Court hearing. I appear to be blocked by India on here @indiawilloughby.bsky.social and Twitter, otherwise I would have asked directly for this misinformation to be corrected.

submitted 96 days ago • 6 comments

For those following the news about new police guidance allowing male-to-female transgender officers with GRCs to intimately search women, including their bodily orifices, I've written about whether this policy is lawful: knowingius.org/p/strip-sear...

submitted 97 days ago • 2 comments

My summary and analysis of the Scottish Governments argument being presented to the Supreme Court next week that the protected characteristic of sex in the Equality Act 2010 is concerned with certificates not biology: knowingius.org/p/what-is-a-...

submitted 99 days ago • 2 comments

The Principal of Edinburgh University took a £20k pay rise this year. This week he announced that there would have to be job cuts. The level of tone deafness in the circumstances is absolutely staggering. www.bbc.com/news/article...

submitted 99 days ago • 1 comment

Bills implement policy instructions. Drafters do not decide policy. What the drafter does is to implement policy decisions made by others. whenever anyone says they have a drafting issue ask if it actually is a drafting issue. Most so called drafting issues are disputes about policy.

submitted 100 days ago • 1 comment

I find this troubling. 'Tapping into philanthropy' is hardly an innovative suggestion: lots of universities already invest huge time and effort in fundraising. And a solution to the funding crisis that seems to presuppose it would work only for a handful of institutions isn't much of a solution.

submitted 100 days ago • 2 comments

If For Women Scotland succeed in the Supreme Court and sex in the Equality Act is not modified by the GRA, then I can’t see a sound legal reason for maintaining the s35 order.

submitted 100 days ago • 0 comments