The Supreme Court of Justice (STJ) decided unanimously on Wednesday (12/11) that the armed forces cannot isolate, reform or dismiss transgender soldiers because of their gender identity. This case, which arose in Rio de Janeiro (Special Appeal No. 2,133,502), was reported by Minister Teodoro Silva Santos, who advocated the unification of theses in defense of the rights of transgender soldiers.
During the vote, he stated that “transgender status or gender transition does not in itself constitute a disability or illness for purposes of military service.”
In the court’s understanding, it is mandatory to use the given name and update all administrative records and communications to reflect the soldier’s gender identity. Furthermore, it has been defined that admission to a vacant position reserved for the opposite sex cannot be used as a justification for dismissal.
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The Court also decided that no military personnel may be removed, retired or dismissed simply because they are transgender or in the process of transitioning, prohibiting mandatory retirements or ex officio authorization (the exclusion of military personnel on the initiative of the competent authority and not at the request of the party concerned) on the basis of gender identity alone.
Since it was taken in a special kind of process called “Incident of Assumption of Jurisdiction” (IAC), understanding the Court becomes a mandatory reference for all judges and courts in the country. This means that from now on, no transgender soldier can be removed or retired solely because of his or her gender identity, and future decisions on this matter must follow the same position as STJ.
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