Where are the Lawsuits? Nancy McDermott Speaks to Themis's Lynn Chadwick

Detransitioner lawsuits are easier said than done. But there's hope.

“I hear people all the time saying, bring on the lawsuit. Well, okay, but—easier said than done.” 

America is the land of lawsuits. Over time they have become the key way to resolve disputes and to hold vested interests to account. Most famously, the Master Settlement Agreement reached with Big Tobacco in 1998 resulted in billions of dollars in compensation paid to states, restricted the promotion and advertisement of tobacco products, and banned tobacco company attempts to obscure or minimize the health risks of smoking. Today the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates the manufacture, marketing and sale of all tobacco products, and the sale of tobacco products is restricted to those over 21.

It is easy to see parallels with gender-related medical treatments and to imagine that detransitioner lawsuits may be the only way to bring the burgeoning trans-medicalization industry under control. But bringing lawsuits is far more difficult than it appears. I spoke with Lynn Chadwick, the founder of Themis Resource Fund about the importance and challenges of litigation and how Themis can help.

Nancy McDermott (NM): What is Themis?

Lynn Chadwick (LC): We set up the Themis Resource Fund about a year ago to connect detransitioned plaintiffs in the United States with attorneys, and to fund their efforts to seek compensation for injuries from affirmative gender treatment.

NM: Why are lawsuits so important? 

LC: We are not gaining the traction that we should in the US. There's been a proliferation of information, reporting, writing, and all sorts of things that have been done that should—if anyone reads documents like the Cass Review or the WPATH files—make it very clear that the US is way behind where it should be as far as listening to what the evidence base is for these medical treatments for kids and vulnerable adults. Unlike the UK and a lot of Europe, the US has dug its heels in, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the media have ignored it for some reason, even though the information is there. I think it's because we are so polarized and it's so political.

And so more people are getting harmed, and I find that very concerning. Like a lot of people, I think that we are not going to get the attention of the people that need to listen to us until there are lawsuits.

NM: Right now there are only a handful of detransitoner cases across the country. Why do you think there aren’t more? 

LC: I hear people all the time saying, bring on the lawsuit. Well, okay, but—easier said than done. The problem with trying to get a lawsuit successfully is that there are many, many roadblocks to litigation. For instance, some of the statutes of limitations in various states are very tight. This is a whole new field of litigation, and it costs a lot of money. You need expert witnesses and there are many costs to file. It is lengthy. It is difficult and there must be money there to cover all the expenses.

Funding is one thing Themis brings to the table, but we also assist detransitioners with their litigation needs.

NM: How does that work?

LC: We are not a law firm. We do not give legal advice, but we bring three different populations together to assist detransitioners. 

The first is attorneys. We are actively seeking attorneys that are interested and qualified to take these cases. We meet with them, talk with them, and find out what their strengths are. We also determine what their needs are as far as a firm, and whether they are realistically understanding what they are getting into and add them to the directory of attorneys on our website.

The second group of people are the detransition plaintiffs themselves. We start by connecting them with an attorney, (they can use one from Themis, or their own). Next, they complete the two-part application on our website with their lawyer. Our committee then reviews the applications. We look for two things. 

From the attorney we want to know if the case is winnable, because we are interested in funding cases that are likely to be successful.

We also ask the client some questions. We are keenly aware that litigation is difficult, long, and traumatizing. And the last thing we want is to be a participant in a process that will further traumatize someone who was already traumatized. We want to make sure that the detransitioner is prepared for the process as much as they can be, that they have a good support system in place and a realistic idea of what is going to happen once they file. They need to be realistic. It is a very long process and the chances of success at this point are not great. They are not stellar. We hope everybody wins. But realistically, if you look back at the legal fight against big tobacco, for example. The first cases were filed in the ‘50s but it was 40 years and 80 cases before anything was won. 

We also need to be realistic about our opposition. There is going to be fierce resistance. They are going to send teams of lawyers. They are going to fight hard. That is one of the reasons it will be so expensive and difficult for those involved.

Beyond that they need to understand that lawyers are not warm, fuzzy people. They do not really hold your hand and ask how you are doing. They just keep you updated, usually, right? “This is where your case is,” and usually, that information is not very understandable. That is why the plaintiffs really need a lot of outside support. 

I would like to see some serious teamwork all over the US because really, we are David fighting Goliath. And a detransitioner—this is someone who has already been through a lot. There has been so much reckless, flippant damage done to countless young people.

Which brings me to the third group of people we are interested in talking to: anyone who cares about this issue. 

Most people are familiar with the 10 famous detransitioners who are all over Twitter and very public, but the truth is they are everywhere. I meet detransitioned people all the time. Most are not pursuing a lawsuit, honestly, because they need to get on with their lives and just try to heal. It is only a small number of extremely brave individuals who want to pursue litigation.

They want to do it because they need to make sense out of their experience and have a feeling that a terrible injustice has been done to them. They are trying to recover from something that it is impossible to fully recover from. They want their experience to have some meaning. They do not want what has been done to them to be done to other people.

They really deserve to be supported because what they are doing is so brave and that is why we need money. We have some money but to really fund this thing, we need people to donate. We need everybody to support us. 

NM: You have said the chances of success are slim and it could take a very long time. Why is it worth it? 

LC: Oh, it's absolutely worth it. The mere fact that lawsuits are being filed is important because it sends a signal to surgeons, mental health professionals, and everyone that there are going to be consequences. I would like every therapist, doctor, surgeon, and anyone who is dealing with these young people and pushing them forward toward irreversible medicalization to wonder if this is the young person who is going to sue them for millions of dollars. I want them to be afraid. They should be because what they are doing is wrong. They should be afraid, and they will not be until there are lawsuits.

NM: Where is Themis available? 

LC: We are US based and will consider funding any lawsuit in the US. We invite everyone to apply. Thus far we have funded two lawsuits for Camille Kiefl and Shapeshifter, but we are looking for more.

NM: Where can people go to donate or to sign up? 

LC. The website is themisresourcefund.org. There is an attorney directory, where potential plaintiffs can find representation and attorneys can sign up to help. The application for funding is there along with a listing of all the current US lawsuits including the filing. Please feel free to email us at themis@genspect.org with any questions.

Themis accepts PayPal or credit cards. We are a registered 501c3 charity with the IRS and all donations are tax deductible. 

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Photo by Tingey Injury Law Firm on Unsplash