On March 10, 2017, in Evans v. Ga. Reg’l Hosp., No. 15-15234, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 4301 (11th Cir. Mar. 10, 2017), the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in a majority split affirmed a district court’s dismissal of a former employee’s suit against her employer, which alleged discrimination in violation of Title VII on the basis of her sexual orientation as a lesbian and for failing to carry herself in a “traditionally” womanly manner. In rendering its decision, the 11th Circuit relied on binding precedent in Blum v. Gulf Oil Corp., 597 F.2d 936, 938 (5th Cir. 1979), which expressly holds that “[d]ischarge for homosexuality is not prohibited by the Title VII.” Id.
The Court in Evans explicitly stated that despite the fact that claims for gender non-conformity and same sex discrimination may be brought under Title VII, it does not allow the Court to abandon the longstanding holding in Blum. Id. at *15.