Legal Lgbt Podcast

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Emeritus Art Leonard of New York Law School, discuss nationwide cases from the August 2023 edition of LGBT Law Notes, including a setback for transgender and nonbinary youth accessing gender affirming healthcare, whether a guidance counselor can be treated as a minister for employment purposes at a Catholic high school, and sports bans in Arizona.

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Emeritus Art Leonard of New York Law School, discuss nationwide cases from the July 2023 edition of LGBT Law Notes, including public accommodation law updates, employment discrimination, protections for collegiate athletes being harassed due to their actual or perceived sexual orientation, and a recent win to protect access to gender affirming healthcare for minors.

In response to 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, the LGBT Bar NY is hosting a special episode to examine the initial impact of the ruling on LGBTQ+ people. Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Emeritus Art Leonard of New York Law School sat down to discuss this historic 6-3 SCOTUS decision in favor of a prospective wedding website designer who did not want to create wedding announcement websites for LGBTQ+ couples seeking to announce their upcoming nuptials. 

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Emeritus Art Leonard of New York Law School, discuss nationwide cases from the June 2023 edition of LGBT Law Notes, including protections for incarcerated transgender people and people living with HIV. Special guest Parker Rose Wingate stops by to discuss her recent publication examining gender-affirming healthcare as symbolic speech entitled to First Amendment protections.  To read Parker's article, visit https://lawandinequality.org/article/trans-bodies-trans-speech/

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Emeritus Art Leonard of New York Law School, discuss nationwide cases from the May 2023 edition of LGBT Law Notes, focusing on the rights of transgender, nonbinary, and gender nonconforming people to socially, legally, and medically transition. 

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY sits down with Richard Saenz (Senior Attorney and the Criminal Justice and Police Misconduct Strategist at Lambda Legal) to discuss Protected & Served? a community survey of LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV, the need for updates to the criminal legal system both in New York state and nationwide, and the relationship between the criminal legal system and the overall LGBTQ+ civil rights movement. To read the 2022 Protected & Served? report, visit www.protectedandserved.org. 

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Emeritus Art Leonard of New York Law School, discuss nationwide cases from the April 2023 edition of LGBT Law Notes, including attempts to ban drag performances and transgender and intersex students participating in K-12 sports, and a possible upcoming Supreme Court decision on so-called conversion therapy.

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY sits down with Jane Fox (Staff Attorney at The Legal Aid Society) and Winston Berkman-Breen (Policy Counsel & Deputy Director of Student Advocacy at the Student Borrower Protection Center) to discuss the latest happenings with federally backed student loans, including the proposed $10k/$20k cancelation program pending before the Supreme Court, reforms to PSLF (Public Service Loan Forgiveness), loan servicer misconduct, and resources to help borrowers.   Links discussed in this month's episode:   studentaid.gov cancelmystudentdebt.org https://www.edcapny.org/  https://studentaid.gov/feedback-ombudsman/disputes/state-ombudsman 

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Emeritus Art Leonard of New York Law School, discuss nationwide cases from the March 2023 edition of LGBT Law Notes, including the rights of parents to select books available in public schools, the treatment of hate speech online, and a victory for incarcerated transgender people.

Professor Emeritus Art Leonard of New York Law School discusses cases from the February 2023 issue of LGBT Law Notes, including: Updates on the Ninth Circuit denying en banc review in a challenge to the Washington State conversion therapy ban A decision from a federal district court in West Virginia upholding a biological sex interpretation of Title IX (with a mention of late breaking news about en banc review of a ruling with similar legal questions in the Second Circuit) The latest chapter in the ongoing saga of Jack Phillips and his Colorado bakery A dispute involving a Catholic hospital owned by the University of Maryland

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Charlie Arrowood, Senior Counsel to the New York State Court System's Richard C. Failla LGBTQ Commission, discuss important updates in resources available to support NYC/NYS LGBTQ+ attorneys and court users, the Failla Commission's 2023 policy goals, and strategies for LGBTQ+ attorneys in all practice areas to ensure a more equitable court system for LGBTQ+ people. For more information about the Failla Commission, visit http://ww2.nycourts.gov/ip/LGBTQ/index.shtml

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Emeritus Art Leonard of New York Law School, discuss nationwide cases from the January 2023 edition of LGBT Law Notes, including the rights of transgender and nonbinary youth to participate in school sports, use the restroom consistent with their gender identity, and update in the Yeshiva University Pride Alliance case, and a tribute to outgoing Law Notes Author William ("Bill") Rold. 

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Associate Professor K.J. Rawson, Founder and Director of the Digital Transgender Archive, discuss the work of the Digital Transgender Archive, the intersection between transgender history and laws impacting the LGBTQ+ community, and the ways the legal profession can implement valuable lessons from transgender history to shape the future of transgender rights and storytelling. https://www.digitaltransgenderarchive.net/

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Art Leonard of New York Law School, discuss marriage equality cases from the December 2022 edition of LGBT Law Notes, including the right for incarcerated people to marry, penalties for refusal to conduct same-sex marriages, a victory in New York for brides seeking the perfect outfit, and the recently signed Respect for Marriage Act. 

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, Christopher R. Riano, President and CEO of the nation's Center for Civic Education, and Professor Emeritus Arthur Leonard of New York Law School summarize and discuss the December 5, 2022 oral arguments in the case of 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis. 

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Art Leonard of New York Law School, discuss a variety of cases from the November 2022 edition of LGBT Law Notes, including recent interpretations of the Bostock decision, obtaining court-ordered name changes, and updates regarding seeking asylum. For a link to the unsealed Prop 8 recordings discussed in this month's podcast, visit

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Art Leonard of New York Law School, discuss a variety of religious exemption cases from the October 2022 edition of LGBT Law Notes, including access to adoption and employer mandated coverage of PrEP.    It's PrEP Awareness Week! For more information access to PrEP and PEP options in NYC, visit https://www1.nyc.gov/site/doh/health/health-topics/prep-pep-resources.page

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Christopher R. Riano, President and CEO of the nation's Center for Civic Education, discuss opportunities for advocacy on behalf of the LGBTQ+ community through participating in drafting an amicus brief such as NYSBA's recent amicus in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis and membership in LGBTQ+ bar associations.    To access the brief/event discussed in this podcast, visit    https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/21/21-476/233927/20220818155659849_21-476%20Amicus%20Brief.pdf   https://nysba.org/events/writing-a-persuasive-amicus-brief-on-appeal/ 

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Professor Art Leonard of New York Law School, discuss a handful of litigation victories from the September 2022 edition of LGBT Law Notes, including breaking news regarding the Yeshiva University Pride Alliance case. 

Shain Filcher, Executive Director of the LGBT Bar of NY, and Jac Quiles, Senior Program Associate with the Reshaping Prosecution Program at the Vera Institute of Justice, discuss safety in the LGBTQ+ community both in and outside of the criminal legal system.