Keeping Up-To-Date with LGBTQ+ Legal News

Tomorrow marks the end of Pride Month - the annual celebration and remembrance of LGBTQ+ identity, experience, and contributions to society. This year, LGBTQ+ legal rights have been heavily reported in the news as many states passed legislation on transgender athlete laws and transgender health care laws, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on same-sex foster care and religious freedoms, and the Equality Act passed in the U.S. House of Representatives and now sits with the U.S. Senate.

To help researchers keep up-to-date on legal news surrounding the LGBTQ+ community, Westlaw, Bloomberg Law, and NewsBank provide curated lists focused on LGBTQ+ identity and discrimination issues.

Westlaw, available in the library, has a "topical highlights" content page on Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Law. To find this content page, type transgender in the main search bar and select "Westlaw Topical Highlights - Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Law".

This collection includes documents prepared by the West editorial staff that summarize recent developments in gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender law. Once in the collection, use the search bar to search within the collection.

Bloomberg Law, also available in the library, has an In Focus page devoted to Gender Identity Discrimination. To find this content page, type in focus gender in the main search bar and select "Gender Identity Discrimination - In Focus".

This collection includes Professional Perspective on "Transgender Issues in the Workplace"; Practical Guidance on "Addressing Workplace Bias & Discrimination" and "Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity"; Reference & Analysis Content focused on employment, employee benefits, and health care; relevant court opinions, executive orders, and agency regulations; and much more. This page also includes the latest news articles from Bloomberg Law on gender identity discrimination.

Once in the collection, using the search bar will search across all of the Labor & Employment Practice Center.

NewsBank, available to all members remotely as well as in the library, uses topic pages to help users with their research. The topic pages are organized by broad categories on the NewsBank homepage.

LGBTQ+ news may be included in multiple topics. For example, the Diversity Equity Inclusion category includes topics related to Gender Identity and Expression as well as Organizations and Associations that include LGBTQ+ focused organizations:

LGBTQ+ legislation trackers are also available from many organizations online. The Legislation Tracker from Freedom for All Americans follows state legislation related to LGBTQ+ discrimination, including comprehensive nondiscrimination bills, bills blocking local control, anti-transgender bills, and religious exemption bills. The ACLU also follows legislation affecting LGBTQ+ rights across the country, including anti-LGBTQ bills, religious exemption bills, bills pre-empting local protections, and LGBTQ equality bills.

Need help with research on LGBTQ+ laws? Ask us for suggestions of where to get started with resources available in the library and available remotely with a Jenkins membership.