Queensland tribunal orders hormone disclosure in transgender vilification case
A Queensland tribunal has ordered transgender woman Jennifer Adrian Buckley to disclose details of the hormones she took and the composition of the substance she fed her newborn son, overturning a previous ruling that had shielded this information. The order comes amid a defamation-style vilification case Buckley brought against Australian Breastfeeding Association counsellor Jasmine Sussex, whom she accuses of calling her a "man pretending to be a woman" and "a child abuser". The Appeal Tribunal's decision marks a significant shift in the case, potentially allowing Sussex's defence to argue her comments were reasonable, made in good faith and in the public interest.
Senior QCAT members Ned Aughterson and Samantha Traves found that tribunal member Peter Bridgman had made legal errors causing a "substantial miscarriage of justice" when he ruled in January that Buckley's medical treatment was irrelevant to the case. Buckley, the biological father of the child, has until 16 September to reveal whether hormones were used, details of medical supervision, and what the fed substance contained; she has previously said she induced lactation in 2019 under endocrinologist Naomi Achong's supervision, using hormones and the drug domperidone. The dispute began after Buckley complained to the Queensland Human Rights Commission in late 2023 over comments Sussex made online between 2021 and 2023.
In short
- Tribunal orders transwoman to disclose hormone use in breastfeeding vilification case
- Appeal Tribunal overturns ruling that shielded medical details as irrelevant
- Buckley must provide information by 16 September
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Those who support the tribunal's order argue that a fair hearing depends on all relevant evidence being before it, particularly in a case where the defence rests on whether comments made were reasonable, in good faith and in the public interest. If Sussex's remarks concerned the safety of a substance fed to a newborn, then the composition of that substance and the medical oversight involved are directly material to assessing whether her concerns had a rational basis, rather than being gratuitously offensive. Excluding such evidence, on this view, would risk shielding one party's account from scrutiny in a dispute that squarely turns on the facts of what was said, why, and whether it was true or reasonably held.
The case against
Those who oppose compelled disclosure argue that an individual's medical history, particularly around deeply personal matters such as hormone treatment and infant feeding, warrants strong privacy protection, especially when the person did not initiate discussion of those details. They contend that forcing disclosure risks exposing sensitive health information to public scrutiny and potential further vilification, effectively punishing the complainant for bringing a claim by making her medical history a matter of tribunal and media record. On this view, the focus of a vilification case should remain on the nature and impact of the words used, not on litigating the complainant's private medical decisions, which could set a troubling precedent for how such claims are defended in future.
Explained simply
The Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) hears disputes under Queensland law, including complaints about vilification. In this case, transgender woman Jennifer Adrian Buckley has brought a complaint over online comments made by Jasmine Sussex, a counsellor with the Australian Breastfeeding Association.
The dispute centres on comments about Buckley’s gender and her care of her newborn son. Buckley has said she induced lactation with medical supervision; the case also concerns what she fed the child. QCAT’s decisions about what evidence can be considered may shape how the complaint is assessed and what arguments Sussex can make in her defence.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “Transgender breastfeeding row: Tribunal orders transwoman to reveal hormone use after feeding baby”.