The Tribunal agreed: We will have a full hearing on the LGB Alliance’s charity status

The Tribunal has agreed to hear our arguments as to why the LGB so-called Alliance (LGBA) should not have been given charitable status and why their activities are not those of a charity. This means Mermaids, the claimant in the case, will have the opportunity to present the facts in full. The hearing will take place in May 2022.

The LGBA wanted a separate hearing to determine whether or not Mermaids had ‘legal standing’ to bring the claim at all. We believe they wanted to close the conversation without having to properly explain themselves. We believed this would only have duplicated work in the long-run, and the Tribunal agreed. The LGBA will still get to argue Mermaids’ claim lacks standing, but only as part of the wider hearing.

To be registered as a charity, an organisation must be established exclusively for purposes which the law recognises as charitable, and it must pursue them in a way which gives rise to tangible benefits that outweigh any associated harms. We don’t believe that legal threshold has been met.

As Mermaids explains: “We are pleased that the Tribunal has made the decision that there will be one hearing that deals with everything. We look forward to the hearing where the LGB Alliance will have to explain themselves. To be registered as a charity, an organisation must be established exclusively for charitable purposes. LGB Alliance does not stand for LGB rights, but exists to divide our community and denigrate trans people and those who support them.”

In addition to our grounds of appeal, we have now submitted two replies, one to the Charity Commission and now one to LGB Alliance.

We are hugely grateful for your support so far. If you are able to make a donation to the CrowdJustice fundraiser backing our appeal, you can do so here.