Leader of firm that won SCOTUS women’s sports cases opens up on dealing with liberal media, Title IX lawsuits

Fox News Digital spoke with Kristen Wagoner, president, CEO and general counsel of Alliance Defending Freedom, after the law firm won a historic Supreme Court victory in its fight to “save women’s sports.”

Wagoner talked about his experience dealing with mainstream media and leading ongoing legal battles against Democrat-run states that continue to allow biological male transgender athletes to play in women’s sports.

About doing interviews with outlets like CNN and MSNBC

Coachman: “I’m so glad because I know where we started. Being able to talk about these things 10 years ago was a challenge. But I think now that Americans are seeing the differences between men and women in real time, they already knew that, but the media has also started to shift a little bit, acknowledging that eight in 10 Americans support women’s right to fair play, and we’re increasingly seeing the real harm that comes from trying to blur the distinctions between men, women, and girls.”

“I will say we had some tough interviews and it was an absolute pleasure to see brave young female athletes standing up for the truth.

“Over the years, we’ve done everything from CNN to MSNBC to other outlets, and I have to say, first of all, I’m grateful for the opportunity to come in and share a different perspective, and especially CNN. “But they ask difficult and sometimes unfair questions, and it’s a real privilege to be able to answer those questions honestly and get the message across to these audiences.”

On ongoing and potential future litigation in the 23 states that do not have laws protecting women’s sports

Coachman: “You can expect us to dismantle gender ideology from the law, and we won’t stop until we do that. It harms women and girls, it harms children, it harms parental rights. In terms of protecting those rights, there is no right that is untouched by gender ideology, and it harms children. We know this from science. The science is now catching up with reality. We have a number of cases already ongoing in these 23 states, and we will continue to work to protect women and girls.”

“And that takes all of us. I think that’s very important. This isn’t something that can just be won in the courtroom. It has to be won in the culture, and the two go hand in hand, so we all have a role to play.”

Colorado Christian graphic artist and website designer Lorie Smith is leaving the Supreme Court with her attorney, Kristen Wagoner of Alliance Defending Freedom in Washington, D.C. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

About the ADF’s newest Title IX lawsuit in Washington state after a female wrestler was allegedly sexually assaulted during her match against a transgender athlete

Coachman: “Kaylee [Keeler’s alleged] The experience is not only unfortunate, but devastating for any girl. Wrestling in a sport as a 16-year-old and believing you were wrestling a girl, only to find out she wasn’t just a boy, but a man as well [allegedly] Being sexually assaulted… well… that’s terrible… But I have to say, that’s not the only situation where threats like sexual assault are made in these contexts.

“I wish it was an isolated case, but it isn’t. It’s especially egregious for the state to say there was consent because the girl was wrestling. We will work until we win this case on her behalf.”

About addressing and talking about concerns about similar incidents in Washington state

ADALEIA CROSS SEEKS VIRAL CONVERSATIONS WITH NEW ALLEGATIONS IN SCOTUS TRANS ATHLETE SEXUAL HARASSMENT SCANDAL

Coachman: “It’s sad that this has to be part of the conversation in the first place. I mean, it’s terrible, it’s crime and there has to be a price to pay for sexual assault and threats of sexual assault. But it’s also very sad that we have to raise these issues to show the real harm that’s happening to women, that women and girls deserve their right to privacy and their right to physical safety. And that’s why you shouldn’t even have to talk about it. As a result of that, we talk about sexual assault because we know that the differences between genders matter.”

“But I will say there are more and more stories like this. What do you think happens when a guy walks into a girl’s locker room? As our client Adelaide [Cross]For example, she said that based on her experience, the comments made to her, the threats made to her, no girl would talk like that, but this is what our girls experience every day when men enter their private spaces.”

ADF’s Title IX lawsuit filed against transgender pitcher who won Minnesota girls softball state championship in 2025 after case was dismissed by federal judge

Coachman: “We’re used to hard, hard stops and going uphill. Sometimes we even say we win by losing. You can lose on the lower court, but you keep going until you win the day, and that’s what we’ll do in Minnesota.

“Again, boys participating in girls’ sports robs them of not only their trophies, not just their scholarships, but even their ability to even be on the team. I mean, there are limited slots, as the Supreme Court has said before, and I believe the Supreme Court is laying the groundwork for future victories in states like Minnesota because the court recognizes that this is a zero-sum game.”

“Every time a boy is on the team, he takes that place from a girl and that’s wrong.”

On the ADF’s recent legal victory and settlement against a Christian school in Vermont that was banned from competing in the state for refusing to compete against a team that included transgender athletes, and on potential future lawsuits challenging the law allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls’ sports in Vermont

The Central Vermont Christian school reopened to Vermont state sports following a court decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit that same month. (Alliance Defending Freedom)

Coachman: “We will continue to fight for Vermont and all the other states that do not recognize not only the rights of women and girls and their biological differences, but also the rights of Christian schools and Christians in this country. This is also an issue of religious freedom and is not even limited to the Christian faith. All of the Abrahamic religions recognize that they should have the right to raise their children in their own faith, in accordance with their own faith, and they believe that God created man and woman. This is not just according to their religious doctrine, but this is the truth.”

“The science supports this.”

About ADF’s 2018 Title IX lawsuit against a transgender track runner in Connecticut

Coachman: “We have a lawsuit in Connecticut, which was actually the first lawsuit filed in the United States. We filed this on behalf of three high school track and field athletes. Again, these are high school girls who have to stand up, not adults, not coaches, not school principals. In the face of all these people, ‘Hey, wait a minute.’ They had to say. These two boys competed as boys three weeks before they arrived and competed against us and won four state championships, over four. It just came from our client and displaced a lot of people.’ As many as 85 opportunities were lost by the girls while these boys competed.

Track and field athlete Selina Soule speaks during an event celebrating the House of Representatives’ passage of the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act outside the U.S. Capitol on April 20, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

“So this case is ongoing. As you mentioned, we have a Minnesota case going on in Washington, assault violations. So I think there are a lot of cases being filed, but we also need to look at how many girls are going to get hurt before we win this. It’s taken us over 10 years to get to the point where 27 states are protected. We need parents, we need school officials, we need all of us to stand up and say, ‘That’s enough.'”

About ADF’s plans for future cases in other states

Coachman: “Yes, but I can’t talk about that right now. What I can tell you is that the Alliance Defending Freedom is privileged to survive. We have a strategic plan. We are following and executing that plan to make the most impact.”

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Message to other women considering stepping up to the fight to “save women’s sport”

Coachman: “My message is this: There is no room for cowardice. There is only room for courage, and it is never too late to speak up for women and girls. The equal opportunities that so many of these athletes enjoy because of Title IX should also be available to those left behind, and I think nothing can come of being a brave person and speaking boldly on behalf of all women and girls.”