California legal course encourages custody attorneys to advocate for the use of puberty blockers in children.
Custody Attorneys Urged to Advocate for Puberty Blockers for Gender-Confused Adolescents
A recent legal training course sponsored by a California bar association is encouraging custody attorneys to push parents into accepting puberty blockers for their gender-confused children. The course, titled “Gender and Transgender Issues in Custody Matters,” aims to educate attorneys known as minor’s counsel who handle custody disputes involving transitioning children. The training, which took place in October 2022, is part of California’s legal training requirements and is available as an on-demand course.
The training session, led by Asaf Orr, the leader of the Transgender Youth Project, emphasizes the importance of starting puberty blockers immediately to accurately assess the child’s mental health and functioning. According to Orr, without these blockers, the child’s well-being will deteriorate. The video recording of the training reveals how activists are leveraging California family law to promote gender transitions in children.
However, critics argue that the training appears more like advocacy than legal education. Dan Morenoff, the executive director of the American Civil Rights Project, questions how the presentation received bar approval as a qualifying continuing legal education activity when it primarily promotes a specific policy approach to a medical issue.
The training also featured Superior Court judge Joni Hiramoto, who has presided over custody disputes involving gender-confused children. In one case, Hiramoto permanently separated a father from his minor son because the father did not support the child’s medical transition. Hiramoto, who personally has a transgender child, suggests that judges should grant legal custody to parents who support the child’s transition.
Puberty blockers, although not federally approved for gender transitions, are presented in the training as “fully reversible” and a “pause button” by Orr. However, concerns remain about their long-term effects on sexual development, bone growth, and neurodevelopment.
This controversial legal training is not the first time Orr and Hiramoto have crossed paths professionally. In a previous case, Hiramoto prohibited a father from seeing his trans-identifying son unless in a supervised therapeutic setting. Orr, in his role as legal director for the U.C. San Francisco Child and Adolescent Gender Clinic, later assisted the son in obtaining puberty blockers and estrogen, despite the father’s objections.
Requests for comments from Orr, U.C. San Francisco’s gender clinic, and the California Civil Rights Department, where Orr currently works, have gone unanswered. The Contra Costa Bar Association, which hosted the training, also did not respond to a request for comment.
It is clear that this legal training raises significant ethical and legal questions surrounding the use of puberty blockers for gender-confused adolescents. The debate continues as to whether these interventions are in the best interest of the child.
What concerns does Vid French, a family law attorney and president of the National Association of Family Courts and Professionals, have regarding the recent training course on puberty blockers for gender-confused adolescents?
Vid French, a family law attorney and the president of the National Association of Family Courts and Professionals, stated that the course seems to have a biased agenda rather than providing neutral education for attorneys. French argues that the role of an attorney is to advocate for their clients’ interests, not to push a particular agenda, especially one that involves suchcontroversial medical interventions for adolescents.
French further emphasizes that the use of puberty blockers ingender-confused children is a highly contentious issue. While some medical professionals believe that puberty blockers can be a temporary solution for young people struggling with their gender identity, others areconcerned about the long-term effects of these interventions. Research has indicated potential side effects, such as infertility and decreased bone density, associated with the use of puberty blockers.
Furthermore, the training is being criticized for its focus on rushing gender transitions in children. Dr. Quentin Van Meter, the president of the American College of Pediatricians, states that it is important to approach gender dysphoria in children with caution and provide comprehensive evaluation and treatment options. Rushing into gender transitions without a thorough assessment of the child’s mental health and understanding of their gender identity can have serious consequences for the child’s well-being in the long run.
The training’s emphasis on advocating for puberty blockers also raises ethical concerns for many. Promoting a medical intervention that is still subject to debate and lacks long-term research reflects a potentially dangerous approach. It is the role of medical professionals, not attorneys, to make decisions about the appropriate medical interventions for gender-confused adolescents. Custody attorneys should focus on protecting their clients’ legal rights and determining the best interests of the child, which may not always align with promoting puberty blockers.
In conclusion, the recent training course sponsored by a California bar association urging custody attorneys to advocate for puberty blockers for gender-confused adolescents raises ethical concerns. While it is important to support and respect individuals struggling with their gender identity, rushing into medical interventions without thoroughly evaluating the child’s mental health and understanding of their gender identity can have long-term consequences. Custody attorneys should focus on advocating for their clients’ interests within the boundaries of legal and ethical considerations, rather than pushing a specific agenda that involves controversial medical interventions for minors.
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