RALEIGH, N.C. — More than $176,000 in legal bills have been racked up by North Carolina Republican Gov. Pat McCrory and state GOP legislative leaders to defend the law directing transgender people to use school or government restrooms corresponding to their birth certificates.
According to a review of legal bills already submitted and made available through a public-records request by The Associated Press, law firms in Washington and Charlotte representing legislative leaders have charged more than $129,000 while McCrory’s lawyers have billed nearly $47,000. This is only a partial tab of what state taxpayers are on the hook for as not all of the law firms working on the case have submitted invoices yet and the case is likely to take months if not years to resolve.
Last week, the NBA pulled its 2017 All-Star game from Charlotte because of the law, which denies anti-discrimination protections to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. That means an estimated potential loss of about $100 million from the most high-profile event to announce its withdrawal.
A court date has been set for Monday to hear arguments from those who want a federal judge to block enforcement of most of the law. Federal Judge Thomas Schroeder is expected to begin trials on up to four of the lawsuits on Nov. 14.