Re Alex
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''Re Alex''. was a legal case decided in the
Family Court of Australia The Family Court of Australia was a superior Australian federal court of record which deals with family law matters, such as divorce applications, parenting disputes, and the division of property when a couple separate. Together with the Fede ...
on 13 April 2004. It examined the rights of a thirteen-year-old adolescent affirming his maleness and seeking hormonal medical treatment "Sex Affirmation Treatment."


Case

An application was made concerning a thirteen-year-old referred to as "Alex". Alex was a ward of the State of Victoria. Alex was diagnosed as experiencing the condition called " gender identity disorder" (often experienced by
transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...
people) controversially contained in the
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders The ''Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders'' (DSM; latest edition: DSM-5-TR, published in March 2022) is a publication by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) for the classification of mental disorders using a common langua ...
("DSM IV") maintained by the American Psychiatrists Association. The key issue was whether the Victorian State Government Department having the responsibility for Alex's care and welfare or the Family Court of Australia should have responsibility for the authorisation of medical treatment involving the administration of hormonal therapies to assist Alex to have a body with
secondary sexual characteristics Secondary sex characteristics are features that appear during puberty in humans, and at sexual maturity in other animals. These characteristics are particularly evident in the sexually dimorphic phenotypic traits that distinguish the sexes of a sp ...
most appropriate to his innate affirmed maleness and, in so doing, relieve him of the extreme suffering he was experiencing as a result of female pubertal development. At birth and, at the time of the case, Alex was, in the eyes of the law, a female.


Judgment

Chief Justice Nicholson ruled as follows: * That the hormonal medical treatment sought by Alex was "Special Medical Treatment" as per the High Court of Australia's decision in Marion's Case and that therefore only the Family Court of Australia, and not parents or legal guardians, has the legal authority to authorise such treatment. * Neither Alex nor any adolescent who is
Transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...
was capable of "
Gillick competence Gillick competence is a term originating in England and Wales and is used in medical law to decide whether a child (a person under 16 years of age) is able to consent to their own medical treatment, without the need for parental permission or kn ...
" to authorise such medical treatment on their own behalf. * Alex's treating doctors were ultimately authorised by the court to commence a form of hormonal treatment - that did not constitute the full Phase 1 and Phase 2 programme of hormonal treatment (referred to as the " Dutch Protocol") that is administered today if the young person presents for and gains court authorisation for treatment by Tanner Stage 2 of Pubertal development. * Alex was permitted to be enrolled in school under a male name (although this was not strictly necessary and not the role of the court even on this judgement).


Subsequent case

In 2004, it was not contemplated that Alex would undergo any surgical intervention while he was under the age of at least 18 years. In 2007 when Alex was 16 years old, the State guardian made a further application to the Family Court of Australia to obtain the court's authorisation for a double mastectomy. Chief Justice
Bryant Bryant may refer to: Organizations * Bryant Bank, a bank in Alabama, United States * Bryant Electric Company, an American manufacturer of electrical components * Bryant Homes, a British house builder, part of Taylor Woodrow * Bryant University ...
authorised the procedure in October 2007 however her reasons for judgment were not published until 2009..


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Re Alex 2004 Fam CA 297 Australian family law LGBT rights in Australia Australian case law 2004 in case law 2004 in Australian law Transgender case law in Australia 2004 in LGBT history