An appeal in AB & AH v State of Western Australia & Anor in the Australian High Court, that jurisdiction's highest court, has been won by two transgender persons. The applicants are now legally recognised as men, although they did not undergo complete sex-change surgery. Transgender and intersex organisations have welcomed this decision.
The Australian High Court held that a person may be identified as male or female as characteristics are "confined to external physical characteristics that are socially recognisable" and "such recognition does not require knowledge of a person's sexual organs". Peter Hyndal, of the organisation Gender Agenda commented that the ruling was in keeping with decisions in South Africa, Britain and other European countries. A consortium of Australian transgender and intersex organisations also welcomed the judgment.Sally Goldner, a spokesperson for Transgender Victoria said that the decision "is in line with the findings of the Australian Human Rights Commission's Sex Files Report in 2009 which recommended that surgery should not be considered a necessary pre-requisite for the legal recognition of a change of sex."
Additionally, Australia has recently changed their passport laws so that transgender people can alter their passports without sex-change surgery.
Click here to view a piece by The Guardian on this case.
Click here to read the judgment in full.