The Williams Institute

Courts, individual judges, and legal scholars have repeatedly found that sexual orientation and gender identity are not related to a person‟s ability to contribute to society, or in the workplace. Courts and scholars have most frequently considered this question when determining whether sexual orientation is a suspect classification for purposes of equal protection analysis. In equal protection analysis, whether the classification at issue bears any relation to an individual‟s ability to contribute to society is one of the core factors used in determining whether such classification should be considered “suspect.”