A federal appeals court has refused to remove a trial judge from a transgender woman's case for his alleged anti-LGBTQ bias.

The panel's one-page order gave no explanation for its decision in rejecting a writ of mandamus filed by attorney Scott Palmer on behalf of Valerie Jackson. Jackson, a transgender woman, wanted to force U.S. District Judge Brantley Starr of the Northern District of Texas off her case, claiming he was biased against her.

Starr, a former deputy first assistant state attorney general, refused to recuse Nov. 22, prompting Jackson's writ of mandamus to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. The panel was composed of Judges James Dennis, Jennifer Elrod and Stuart Duncan.