Case: World Professional Association for Transgender Health v. Federal Trade Commission

1:26-cv-00532 | U.S. District Court for the District of District of Columbia

Filed Date: Feb. 18, 2026

Case Ongoing

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Case Summary

On February 18, 2026, the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) filed this lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the Federal Trade Commission and its commissioners, seeking declaratory and injunctive relief to block enforcement of a Civil Investigative Demand ("CID") related to gender-affirming healthcare. The complaint asserted claims pursuant to the First Amendment and Fourth Amendments alleging that the FTC unlawfully targeted WPATH’s noncommercial speech and used compulsory process to retaliate against and chill protected expression. WPATH alleged that the FTC lacked jurisdiction and had issued an overbroad investigative demand as part of a politically motivated effort to undermine its Standards of Care and silence support for transgender healthcare. It sought declaratory relief and preliminary and permanent injunctions prohibiting the FTC from enforcing the CID or continuing its investigation.

The case was assigned to Chief Judge James E. Boasberg.

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Summary Authors

Madilynn O'Hara (2/24/2026)

People

For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72295218/parties/world-professional-association-for-transgender-health-v-federal-trade/

Judge(s)

Boasberg, James Emanuel (District of Columbia)

Attorney for Plaintiff

Lowell, Abbe David (District of Columbia)

Judge(s)

Boasberg, James Emanuel (District of Columbia)

Attorney for Plaintiff

Lowell, Abbe David (District of Columbia)

Attorney Contact Information via CourtListener

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Documents in the Clearinghouse

	Document
1 1:26-cv-00532	Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief	Feb. 18, 2026	Feb. 18, 2026 Complaint

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Docket

See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72295218/world-professional-association-for-transgender-health-v-federal-trade/

Last updated March 18, 2026, 3:10 a.m.

ECF Number	Description	Date	Link Date / Link
1	COMPLAINT against All Defendants ( Filing fee $ 405 receipt number ADCDC-12252106) filed by WORLD PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR TRANSGENDER HEALTH. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit 1, # 2 Civil Cover Sheet, # 3 Summons to FTC, # 4 Summons to Andrew N. Ferguson, # 5 Summons to Mark R. Meador, # 6 Summons to John Doe 1, # 7 Summons to John Doe 2, # 8 Summons to John Doe 3, # 9 Summons to USAO for D.C., # 10 Summons to Pamela J. Bondi)(Lowell, Abbe) (Entered: 02/18/2026) 1 Exhibit 1 View on PACER 2 Civil Cover Sheet View on PACER 3 Summons to FTC View on PACER 4 Summons to Andrew N. Ferguson View on PACER 5 Summons to Mark R. Meador View on PACER 6 Summons to John Doe 1 View on PACER 7 Summons to John Doe 2 View on PACER 8 Summons to John Doe 3 View on PACER 9 Summons to USAO for D.C. View on PACER 10 Summons to Pamela J. Bondi View on PACER	Feb. 18, 2026	Feb. 18, 2026 Clearinghouse
2	SUMMONS (5) Issued Electronically as to FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION, ANDREW N. FERGUSON, MARK R. MEADOR, U.S. Attorney and U.S. Attorney General (Attachments: # 1 Notice and Consent)(zhcn) (Entered: 02/19/2026)	Feb. 19, 2026	Feb. 19, 2026
	Case Assigned/Reassigned	Feb. 19, 2026	Feb. 19, 2026
	Case Assigned to Chief Judge James E. Boasberg. (zhcn)	Feb. 19, 2026	Feb. 19, 2026
3	MOTION for Preliminary Injunction by WORLD PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR TRANSGENDER HEALTH. (Attachments: # 1 Memorandum in Support, # 2 Declaration of Leo Lewis, # 3 Declaration of Abbe David Lowell, # 4 Declaration of Asa Radix, # 5 Declaration of Loren Schechter, # 6 Declaration of Scott Leibowitz, # 7 Declaration of Schuyler Standley, # 8 Exhibit 1, # 9 Exhibit 2, # 10 Exhibit 3, # 11 Exhibit 4, # 12 Exhibit 5, # 13 Exhibit 6, # 14 Exhibit 7, # 15 Exhibit 8, # 16 Exhibit 9, # 17 Exhibit 10, # 18 Exhibit 11, # 19 Exhibit 12, # 20 Exhibit 13, # 21 Exhibit 14, # 22 Exhibit 15, # 23 Exhibit 16, # 24 Exhibit 17, # 25 Exhibit 18, # 26 Exhibit 19, # 27 Exhibit 20, # 28 Exhibit 21, # 29 Exhibit 22, # 30 Exhibit 23, # 31 Exhibit 24, # 32 Exhibit 25, # 33 Exhibit 26, # 34 Exhibit 27, # 35 Exhibit 28, # 36 Exhibit 29, # 37 Exhibit 30, # 38 Exhibit 31, # 39 Text of Proposed Order)(Lowell, Abbe) (Entered: 02/25/2026) 1 Memorandum in Support View on RECAP 2 Declaration of Leo Lewis View on RECAP 3 Declaration of Abbe David Lowell View on PACER 4 Declaration of Asa Radix View on PACER 5 Declaration of Loren Schechter View on RECAP 6 Declaration of Scott Leibowitz View on PACER 7 Declaration of Schuyler Standley View on PACER 8 Exhibit 1 View on PACER 9 Exhibit 2 View on PACER 10 Exhibit 3 View on PACER 11 Exhibit 4 View on PACER 12 Exhibit 5 View on PACER 13 Exhibit 6 View on PACER 14 Exhibit 7 View on PACER 15 Exhibit 8 View on PACER 16 Exhibit 9 View on PACER 17 Exhibit 10 View on PACER 18 Exhibit 11 View on PACER 19 Exhibit 12 View on PACER 20 Exhibit 13 View on PACER 21 Exhibit 14 View on PACER 22 Exhibit 15 View on PACER 23 Exhibit 16 View on PACER 24 Exhibit 17 View on PACER 25 Exhibit 18 View on PACER 26 Exhibit 19 View on PACER 27 Exhibit 20 View on PACER 28 Exhibit 21 View on PACER 29 Exhibit 22 View on PACER 30 Exhibit 23 View on PACER 31 Exhibit 24 View on PACER 32 Exhibit 25 View on PACER 33 Exhibit 26 View on PACER 34 Exhibit 27 View on PACER 35 Exhibit 28 View on PACER 36 Exhibit 29 View on PACER 37 Exhibit 30 View on PACER 38 Exhibit 31 View on PACER 39 Text of Proposed Order View on PACER	Feb. 25, 2026	Feb. 25, 2026
	.Order AND ~Util - Set/Reset Hearings	Feb. 25, 2026	Feb. 25, 2026
	MINUTE ORDER: The Court ORDERS that the parties shall appear for a Zoom hearing to set a briefing schedule for Plaintiff's 3 Motion for Preliminary Injunction on March 2, 2026, at 3:00 p.m., unless the Court approves an agreed-upon briefing schedule before that time. So ORDERED by Chief Judge James E. Boasberg on February 25, 2026. (lcjeb3)	Feb. 25, 2026	Feb. 25, 2026
4	NOTICE of Appearance by Alex Potapov on behalf of All Defendants (Potapov, Alex) (Entered: 02/26/2026)	Feb. 26, 2026	Feb. 26, 2026
5	NOTICE of Appearance by Ethan D. Beck on behalf of All Defendants (Beck, Ethan) (Entered: 02/26/2026)	Feb. 26, 2026	Feb. 26, 2026
6	Consent MOTION for Scheduling Order Setting Briefing Schedule for Plaintiff's Motion for Preliminary Injunction by WORLD PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR TRANSGENDER HEALTH. (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Lowell, Abbe) (Entered: 02/26/2026) 1 Text of Proposed Order View on PACER	Feb. 26, 2026	Feb. 26, 2026 RECAP
7	LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by WORLD PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR TRANSGENDER HEALTH (Lowell, Abbe) (Entered: 02/27/2026)	Feb. 27, 2026	Feb. 27, 2026
8	MOTION for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice :Attorney Name- Schuyler J. Standley, Filing fee $ 100, receipt number ADCDC-12272580. Fee Status: Fee Paid. by WORLD PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR TRANSGENDER HEALTH. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A (Decl. of Schuyler J. Standley), # 2 Exhibit B (Cert. of Good Standing))(Lowell, Abbe) (Entered: 03/02/2026)	March 2, 2026	March 2, 2026
9	NOTICE of Appearance by Isabella M. Oishi on behalf of WORLD PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR TRANSGENDER HEALTH (Oishi, Isabella) (Entered: 03/02/2026)	March 2, 2026	March 2, 2026
	Order on Motion for Scheduling Order AND Set/Reset Deadlines/Hearings	March 2, 2026	March 2, 2026
	MINUTE ORDER: The Court GRANTS the Consent 6 Motion for Scheduling Order and ADOPTS the parties' proposed briefing schedule. It thus ORDERS that: 1) Defendants shall file their response to Plaintiff's 3 Motion for Preliminary Injunction by March 19, 2026; Plaintiff shall file its reply by March 30, 2026; 3) The Scheduling Conference set for Mach 2, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. is VACATED; and 4) Oral argument on Plaintiff's 3 Motion for Preliminary Injunction shall take place on April 7, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. So ORDERED by Chief Judge James E. Boasberg on March 2, 2026. (lcjeb3)	March 2, 2026	March 2, 2026
	Order on Motion for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice	March 2, 2026	March 2, 2026
	MINUTE ORDER: The Court ORDERS that the 8 Motion for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice of Schuyler J. Standley is GRANTED. Counsel should register for e-filing via PACER and file a notice of appearance pursuant to LCvR 83.6(a) Click for instructions. So ORDERED by Chief Judge James E. Boasberg on March 2, 2026. (lcjeb3) (lcml)	March 2, 2026	March 2, 2026
10	RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION served on 3/2/2026 (Lowell, Abbe) (Entered: 03/04/2026)	March 4, 2026	March 4, 2026
11	RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed. ANDREW N. FERGUSON served on 3/2/2026 (Lowell, Abbe) (Entered: 03/04/2026)	March 4, 2026	March 4, 2026
12	RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed. MARK R. MEADOR served on 3/2/2026 (Lowell, Abbe) (Entered: 03/04/2026)	March 4, 2026	March 4, 2026
13	RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed as to the United States Attorney. Date of Service Upon United States Attorney on 3/2/2026. Answer due for ALL FEDERAL DEFENDANTS by 5/1/2026. (Lowell, Abbe) (Entered: 03/04/2026)	March 4, 2026	March 4, 2026
14	RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed on United States Attorney General. Date of Service Upon United States Attorney General 03/02/2026. (Lowell, Abbe) (Entered: 03/04/2026)	March 4, 2026	March 4, 2026
15	ENTERED IN ERROR.....RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed. (Lowell, Abbe) Modified on 3/5/2026; duplicate. (znmw). (Entered: 03/04/2026)	March 4, 2026	March 4, 2026
16	ENTERED IN ERROR.....RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed. (Lowell, Abbe) Modified on 3/5/2026; duplicate. (znmw). (Entered: 03/04/2026)	March 4, 2026	March 4, 2026
17	ENTERED IN ERROR.....RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed. (Lowell, Abbe) Modified on 3/5/2026; duplicate (znmw). (Entered: 03/04/2026)	March 4, 2026	March 4, 2026
18	Unopposed MOTION for Extension of Time to File Answer by JOHN DOE, 2, JOHN DOE, 3, JOHN DOE, 1, FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION, ANDREW N. FERGUSON, MARK R. MEADOR. (Attachments: # 1 Proposed Order)(Beck, Ethan) (Entered: 03/05/2026)	March 5, 2026	March 5, 2026
	Order on Motion for Extension of Time to Answer	March 5, 2026	March 5, 2026
	MINUTE ORDER: The Court ORDERS that: 1) Defendants' 18 Motion for Extension of Time is GRANTED; and 2) Defendants shall file their Answer or otherwise respond to Plaintiff's Complaint within 30 days after the Court rules on Plaintiff's 3 Motion for Preliminary Injunction. So ORDERED by Chief Judge James E. Boasberg on March 5, 2026. (lcjeb3)	March 5, 2026	March 5, 2026
19	NOTICE of Appearance by John Bailey on behalf of All Defendants (Bailey, John) (Entered: 03/09/2026)	March 9, 2026	March 9, 2026
20	NOTICE of Appearance by Aaron Martin Panner on behalf of AMICI ACADEMIC PEDIATRIC ASSOCIATION, ET AL. (Panner, Aaron) (Entered: 03/10/2026)	March 10, 2026	March 10, 2026
21	Consent MOTION for Leave to File Amicus Brief by AMICI ACADEMIC PEDIATRIC ASSOCIATION, ET AL.. (Attachments: # 1 Amicus Brief, # 2 Text of Proposed Order)(Panner, Aaron) (Entered: 03/10/2026)	March 10, 2026	March 10, 2026
	Order on Motion for Leave to File Amicus Brief	March 11, 2026	March 11, 2026
	MINUTE ORDER: The Court ORDERS that Amici's 21 Motion is GRANTED provided that Amici file a brief with no more than five footnotes containing no more than 25 aggregate lines of text. So ORDERED by Chief Judge James E. Boasberg on March 11, 2026. (lcjeb3)	March 11, 2026	March 11, 2026
24	Unopposed MOTION for Leave to File Amicus Brief by LAMBDA LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATION FUND, INC.. (Attachments: # 1 Proposed Order, # 2 Proposed Brief of Amicus Curiae Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, # 3 LCvP 26.1 Certificate)(Loewy, Karen) (Entered: 03/17/2026) 1 Proposed Order View on RECAP 2 Proposed Brief of Amicus Curiae Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund View on RECAP 3 LCvP 26.1 Certificate View on RECAP	March 17, 2026	March 17, 2026 RECAP
25	NOTICE of Appearance by Karen Loewy on behalf of LAMBDA LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATION FUND, INC. (Loewy, Karen) (Entered: 03/17/2026)	March 17, 2026	March 17, 2026
26	Amicus Brief	March 17, 2026	March 17, 2026 RECAP
27	Appear Pro Hac Vice	March 17, 2026	March 17, 2026
28	Appear Pro Hac Vice	March 17, 2026	March 17, 2026
29	Appear Pro Hac Vice	March 17, 2026	March 17, 2026
	Order on Motion for Leave to File Amicus Brief	March 17, 2026	March 17, 2026
	MINUTE ORDER: The Court ORDERS that Amici's 24 Motion for Leave to File Amicus Brief is GRANTED. So ORDERED by Chief Judge James E. Boasberg on March 17, 2026. (lcjeb3)	March 17, 2026	March 17, 2026

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Case Details

State / Territory:

District of Columbia

Case Type(s):

Healthcare Access and Reproductive Issues

Special Collection(s):

Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government

Key Dates

Filing Date: Feb. 18, 2026

Case Ongoing: Yes

Plaintiffs

Plaintiff Description:

World Professional Association for Transgender Health, a nonprofit and non-partisan organization dedicated to promoting science-based medical care, education, research, public policy and respect in transgender health.

Plaintiff Type(s):

Non-profit NON-religious organization

Public Interest Lawyer: No

Filed Pro Se: No

Class Action Sought: No

Class Action Outcome: Not sought

Defendants

Federal

Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission

Commissioners of the Federal Trade Commission

Federal Trade Commission

Defendant Type(s):

Jurisdiction-wide

Case Details

Causes of Action:

All Writs Act, 28 U.S.C. § 1651

Declaratory Judgment Act, 28 U.S.C. § 2201

Constitutional Clause(s):

Due Process

Due Process: Procedural Due Process

Due Process: Substantive Due Process

Unreasonable search and seizure

Other Dockets:

District of District of Columbia 1:26-cv-00532

Available Documents:

Complaint (any)

Trial Court Docket

Outcome

Prevailing Party: None Yet / None

Relief Sought:

Declaratory judgment

Injunction

Relief Granted:

None yet

Source of Relief:

None yet

Issues

Discrimination Area:

Disparate Impact

Disparate Treatment

Discrimination Basis:

Gender identity

Recommended Citation

Case Summary of World Professional Association for Transgender Health v. Federal Trade Commission, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/47842/ (last updated 2/24/2026).