Court Rejects Flawed Petition

Lambda Legal, with co-counsel Jonathan Shurberg (retained by Equality Maryland) and pro bono support from the law firm of Arnold & Porter, represented concerned Montgomery County registered voters who opposed this latest effort to set back the clock on civil rights in the state.

On November 13, 2007, in order to address discrimination against transgender individuals, the Montgomery County Council unanimously passed an act that added gender identity to the county's civil rights law. A group calling itself Citizens for Responsible Government (CRG) sought to block the law by gathering signatures for a referendum petition. We challenged the referendum because the Montgomery County Board of Election over counted the signatures in violation of the rules governing the process, and Maryland's highest court ruled in our favor.

"This long overdue, crucial law is all about assuring that unchecked bias is not allowed to inhibit our neighbors' abilities to make a living or rent a home, and as a Montgomery County resident, I breathe a sigh of relief that this campaign to roll back anti-discrimination protections is now over," said Dan Furmansky, Executive Director of Equality Maryland.