Australia’s Federal Court has delivered its long-awaited judgment in the Giggle v Tickle appeal, finding in favour of Roxanne Tickle.
The full court, made up of Justices Melissa Perry, Geoffrey Kennett and Wendy Abraham, handed down the decision today after a two-day hearing last August.
The case involved Sall Grover, founder of the women-only social networking app Giggle, who had removed Roxanne Tickle, a biological male who identifies as a transgender woman, from the platform. Grover appealed an earlier 2024 ruling that found the exclusion amounted to indirect discrimination. Tickle cross-appealed, seeking a finding of direct discrimination and higher damages.
The court ruled that Giggle and Grover directly discriminated against Tickle on the ground of gender identity by excluding them based on their gender-related appearance, as shown in a selfie, and then refusing to readmit them.
The judges agreed with the original decision on the interpretation of special measures under the Sex Discrimination Act, concluding that the app’s women-only policy did not provide a defence in this instance. They increased the damages award to $20,000, taking into account what they described as aggravating conduct by Grover.
Hellbound and Down 