A retired UK Supreme Court justice has suggested she would not have reached the same conclusion as the judges who ruled in favour of For Women Scotland (FWS), saying she wishes she had heard the case herself.
Former Supreme Court president Baroness (Brenda) Hale indicated that the landmark judgment—which held that the terms “woman” and “sex” in the Equality Act 2010 refer to biological women and biological sex—might have been decided differently had she been on the bench.
Baroness Hale of Richmond, whose profile rose during the Brexit years because of the Supreme Court’s Article 50 and parliamentary prorogation rulings, has previously argued that the legal definition of a woman based on biological sex “has been misinterpreted.”
Her views also appear to be shared by her daughter, Dame Julia Anne Hoggett DBE, the banker and risk manager who became chief executive of London Stock Exchange plc in 2021 and has since hosted numerous corporate events focused on transgender issues.
Although Hale was no longer serving on the Supreme Court when the landmark judgment was handed down in April 2025, her latest comments serve as a reminder of how influential gender ideology remains within parts of the British establishment.
