March 3, 2026 — Yesterday, a federal court in Pittsburgh issued another rejection of the Department of Justice’s sweeping demands for highly sensitive medical records of young people receiving gender affirming care from UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.
The court reaffirmed its December 24 decision to quash the DOJ’s subpoena, while rejecting the government’s last-minute offer to accept “anonymized” versions of the documents, holding that,
“Left to its devices, the DOJ would trample states-rights to amass deeply personal information ‒ regarding minor children ‒ in service of its crusade to eliminate medical care that, until recently, was in its own eyes legal. It remains so in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. . . .
“The time for muscle-memory genuflection, or benefit of the doubt, is over. The subpoena exceeds the DOJ’s statutory authority.”
Several young patients and their families, represented by the Public Interest Law Center and the law firm Ballard Spahr, urged the court to block the subpoena, arguing that it was improperly motivated, overly broad, and harmful to the patients involved. After granting the patients’ motion to quash the subpoena in December, the court allowed further briefing on the Department of Justice’s last-minute offer to accept anonymized records, which the patients opposed on multiple grounds.
In yesterday’s ruling, the court found that the records are filled with such sensitive and specific information that “true and effective anonymization cannot be achieved,” that the DOJ was seeking to “usurp the States’ regulation of the medical profession,” and that the subpoena carries “more than a ‘whiff’ of ill-intent. Arguably, it is closer to a stench.”
“Not only did the court soundly reject the DOJ’s proposal to accept anonymized records, but it called out the DOJ’s shameful conduct in no uncertain terms,” said Mimi McKenzie, legal director at the Public Interest Law Center. “Our clients should never have had to defend their most private medical records from this kind of political attack by our government.”
“We’re pleased that the court reaffirmed its earlier decision to quash the DOJ’s subpoena for the highly sensitive medical records of children,” said Michael P. Robotti, partner in Ballard Spahr’s Litigation Department. “This ruling appropriately protects the confidentiality of the children’s medical information.”
Several courts around the country have also halted similar subpoenas, including one in Philadelphia. When filed, this matter was the first challenge brought by patients and the first time a court has ruled on the legitimacy of the Department of Justice’s request for allegedly anonymized records.
The Department of Justice had previously appealed the court’s December 24, 2025, order. In its ruling, the court also deemed that appeal premature.
About The Public Interest Law Center
The Public Interest Law Center uses high-impact legal strategies to advance the civil, social, and economic rights of communities in the Philadelphia region facing discrimination, inequality, and poverty. We use litigation, community education, advocacy, and organizing to secure access to fundamental resources and services.
About Ballard Spahr
Ballard Spahr—an AmLaw 100 law firm with more than 750 lawyers in 18 U.S. offices–has a longstanding commitment to pro bono representation for individuals and organizations in need of legal services, in areas as diverse as civil rights advocacy, legal clinics for veterans in need of wills and other legal documents, and low-income individuals in a spectrum of civil and criminal matters. The firm lawyers and professionals provide more than 50,000 hours annually to ensure that clients have a voice and a legal advocate, regardless of their ability to pay.
