Gender Dysphoria Ruling Shows How Every Appeals Seat Counts

A narrowly divided Fourth Circuit ruling that gender dysphoria is protected under federal disability law demonstrates the impact each vacancy has on an appeals court’s ideological lean.

A US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit majority composed almost entirely of Democratic-appointed judges Oct. 7 agreed with a three-judge panel’s holding that gender dysphoria is covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Six of the court’s Republican-appointed judges dissented.

The 15-member appeals court, once seen as one of the most conservative in the US, became more moderate after President Barack Obama named seven judges to it. Four of Obama’s picks ...