AB v. State of Western Australia and Anor
AH v. State of Western Australia and Anor

Lower Court Judgment

2/09/2010 Supreme Court of Western Australia (Court of Appeal) (Martin CJ, Pullin J, Buss J)

[2010] WASCA 172

Catchwords

Statutes — Acts of Parliament — Interpretation — Gender reassignment — Applicants born female — Applicants gender dysphoric and diagnosed as having gender identity disorder — Applicants commenced and continue to undergo testosterone therapy, rendering each currently infertile — Applicants underwent bilateral mastectomies but not hysterectomies — Applicants have not undergone phalloplasty due to associated risks — Gender Reassignment Board refused applicants' applications for certificates recognising reassignment of their gender from female to male — Whether Gender Reassignment Act 2000 (WA) ("Act") remedial or beneficial legislation requiring liberal interpretation — Whether each applicant has "the physical characteristics by virtue of which a person is identified as male" to be determined by reference to general community standards and expectations or from perspective of reasonable member of community informed of facts and circumstances, including remedial purpose of Act — Whether decision to issue gender reassignment certificate to be made having regard solely to applicants' external physical characteristics or also by reference to applicants' internal physical characteristics — Whether female-to-male re-assignee with internal and external female genitals must undertake surgery to remove internal female genitals and construct external male genitals in order to have "the [2011] physical characteristics by virtue of which a person is identified as male" — Gender Reassignment Act 2000 (WA), ss 3, 14, 15.

Words and phrases — "the physical characteristics by virtue of which a person is identified as male", "gender characteristics", "reassignment procedure".

Short Particulars