Texas’ Supreme Court is forcing an LGBT organization to produce documents regarding illegal gender mutilation procedures on minors. The group had been fighting demands made by the Office of the Attorney General since early 2024.
A trial court had previously shielded the organization from the OAG investigation. That judgement is now reversed.
Background
In 2023, Texas passed Senate Bill 14—a state law that prohibits the medical mutilation of children for so-called “gender transitioning, gender reassignment, or gender dysphoria” purposes.
Since SB 14’s enactment, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has “sought to determine whether medical providers are misleading insurers and others by billing treatments outlawed by SB 14 as treatments for lawful purposes.” Such a mischaracterization would also be in violation of the Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA).
Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) is a nonprofit corporation describing itself as “a resource for LGBTQ+ people, families, and allies.” It is incorporated in California but has many chapters and over a thousand members in Texas.
In the summer of 2023, PFLAG joined several other parties in a lawsuit seeking to enjoin enforcement of SB 14.
PFLAG Executive Director Brian Bond submitted an affidavit in the case, mentioning conversations about “alternative avenues to maintain [transgender] care in Texas.” This led the OAG to believe that PFLAG may be in possession of information relevant to the office’s investigation of DTPA and SB 14 violations by medical providers.
On February 5, 2024, the OAG issued a civil investigative demand to PFLAG, seeking documents supporting the Bond affidavit as well as other related categories of documents. Rather than producing the requested documents, PFLAG challenged the demand in the 261st District Court in Travis County.
After significant delays, Judge Amy Clark-Meachum (D) issued a final judgment on March 10, 2025. The ruling broadly protected PFLAG from producing several categories of material. The OAG appealed this decision directly to the Supreme Court of Texas.
Supreme Court Ruling
Texas’ Supreme Court released its decision Friday morning, ruling in favor of the OAG and ordering PFLAG to release the requested documents. The opinion, written by Chief Justice Jimmy Blacklock, was highly critical of the district court ruling.
“Although this matter could have been handled much like a conventional discovery dispute, it was not,” wrote Blacklock. “It remained pending in the district court for over a year, during which time the corporation’s section 17.61(g) petition was used as a way to put the Attorney General’s investigation on trial—rather than as a way to obtain speedy judicial rulings on recognized discovery objections.”
He noted that although the discovery dispute is related to SB 14, it should not have been subject to greater judicial inquiry “merely because of its politically sensitive topic.”
Blacklock reaffirmed the right of the OAG to investigate such matters.
“As with any other law governing the medical industry, if the Attorney General reasonably believes that doctors or hospitals are using deceptive practices to avoid detection of their violation of the law, he may use the tools available to him to investigate the matter.”
He noted that although courts should be sensitive to the privacy interests of those involved, the OAG already agreed to allow redactions.
“[T]he district court’s rulings protecting the corporation from the requested discovery and enjoining further investigation by the Attorney General cannot stand,” reads the ruling. “The district court’s ‘Final Declaratory Judgment and Injunction’ is reversed, and the matter is remanded for proceedings consistent with this opinion. On remand, the corporation must produce responsive documents.”
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