The key points from UK Supreme Court ruling on gender 'definition of a woman' For Women Scotland case

The terms “woman” and “sex” in the Equality Act refer to a biological woman and biological sex, the Supreme Court has ruled.

Activists sing as they hold placards including "women are born, not some bloke with a form" and "women are women, men are men, you can't change sex with the stroke of a pen" during a protest in Parliament Square across from the Supreme Court in London. Picture: Henry Nicholls/AFP via Getty Images | AFP via Getty Images

Campaign group For Women Scotland (FWS) brought a series of challenges, including to the UK’s highest court, over the definition of “woman” in Scottish legislation mandating 50 per cent female representation on public boards.

READ MORE: Supreme Court gender verdict on definition of a woman due - here's what it will mean

The dispute centres on whether someone with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) recognising their gender as female should be treated as a woman under the UK 2010 Equality Act.

Here are the key points from the ruling handing down by Lord Hodge:

‘Woman’ refers to biological sex

Delivering the judgement of the UK Supreme Court, Judge Lord Hodge said the “central question” is how the words “woman” and “sex” are defined in the 2010 Equality Act.

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READ MORE: For Women Scotland LIVE: UK Supreme Court rules unanimously that 'sex' in the Equality Act 2010 refers to biological sex

He said: “Do these terms refer to biological woman or biological sex, or is a woman to be interpreted as extending to a trans woman with a Gender Recognition Certificate?

“The unanimous decision of this court is that the terms woman and sex in the Equality Act 2010 refer to a biological woman and biological sex”.

The concept of sex is binary

In the 88-page ruling, Lord Hodge, Lady Rose and Lady Simler said: “The definition of sex in the Equality Act 2010 makes clear that the concept of sex is binary, a person is either a woman or a man.

“Persons who share that protected characteristic for the purposes of the group-based rights and protections are persons of the same sex and provisions that refer to protection for women necessarily exclude men.

(L-R) Susan Smith and Marion Calder, directors of For Women Scotland, arrive at the Supreme Court in London. Picture: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images | Getty Images

“Although the word ‘biological’ does not appear in this definition, the ordinary meaning of those plain and unambiguous words corresponds with the biological characteristics that make an individual a man or a woman.

“These are assumed to be self-explanatory and to require no further explanation.

“Men and women are on the face of the definition only differentiated as a grouping by the biology they share with their group.”

Gender certificates make Equality Act read in 'incoherent way'

The judges continued in their ruling: “References to a ‘woman’ and ‘women’ as a group sharing the protected characteristic of sex would include all females of any age, irrespective of any other protected characteristic, and those trans women, biological men, who have the protected characteristic of gender reassignment and a GRC, and who are therefore female as a matter of law.

“The same references would necessarily exclude men of any age, but they would also exclude some, biological, women living in the male gender with a GRC, trans men who are legally male.

“The converse position would apply to references to ‘man’ and ‘men’ as a group sharing the same protected characteristic.

“We can identify no good reason why the legislature should have intended that sex-based rights and protections under the EA 2010 should apply to these complex, heterogenous groupings, rather than to the distinct group of, biological, women and girls, or men and boys, with their shared biology leading to shared disadvantage and discrimination faced by them as a distinct group.”

Trans people still have protection under law

In his ruling, Lord Hodge explained: "The Equality Act 2010 gives transgender people protection, not only against discrimination through the protected characteristic of gender reassignment, but also against direct discrimination, indirect discrimination and harassment in substance in their acquired gender."

The Scottish Government guidance was ‘incorrect’

The summary read: “A person with a Gender Recognition Certificate in the female gender does not come within the definition of a ‘woman’ under the Equality Act 2010 and the statutory guidance issued by the Scottish ministers is incorrect.”