Trans* EU citizens: Free beyond movement? The Grand Chamber in Case C-4/23 Mirin, EU:C:2024:845

The CJEU's judgment in Case C-4/23 Mirin establishes an obligation for the Member States to recognize the change in name and the gender transition – and, accordingly, amend civil status entries, documents and certificates – after a legal gender recognition (LGR) procedure undertaken in another Member State. Mirin thus connects three different streams of case law: the one on names and EU citizenship, the one on LGBTIQA+ rights in a free movement dimension and that on transgender rights. In our paper, we argue that this case opens several questions for the development of EU law. First, although Mirin is firmly rooted in a free movement language and reasoning, it seems a preparatory ruling gradually setting the scene for a non-free-movement-only solution in relation to the previous case law on LGBTIQA+ rights. Second, the CJEU strengthens the fundamental rights dimension of this case law. Third, we argue that Mirin represents an occasion for the CJEU to develop a more comprehensive understanding of transgender rights, which have so far been framed in a purely medicalized definition.