Australia court doubles payout for trans woman in landmark discrimination case

An Australian court has doubled the payout for a transgender woman, Georgie Tickle, in a landmark discrimination case. Tickle was removed from the Giggle dating app in 2021 by the app's owner, Jane Grover, after Grover reviewed Tickle's profile picture and deemed her not to be a woman. The Federal Court ruled that Grover's actions constituted unlawful direct discrimination under the Sex Discrimination Act, as Tickle was treated less favorably than a cisgender woman. The court found the original ruling, which deemed the discrimination indirect, had erred. Tickle had successfully used the app for approximately six months before her account was blocked based on Grover's visual assessment of her profile.

An Australian federal court has upheld a landmark decision finding the women-only social media app Giggle for Girls and its founder, Sall Grover, unlawfully discriminated against transgender woman Roxanne Tickle. The court affirmed that Tickle was discriminated against on the basis of her gender identity when she was denied access to the app in 2021. Tickle's cross-appeal was also successful, with the court ruling she experienced two instances of direct discrimination: initial exclusion due to her gender-related appearance and subsequent refusal of readmission. The federal court awarded Tickle $20,000 in damages, doubling the initial amount. The ruling confirms that barring Tickle from the platform constituted both direct and indirect discrimination.