Multiple civil rights groups have sued the Department of Defense (DOD) after it allegedly failed to provide requested information about the efficacy of women in ground combat roles.
The American Civil Liberties Union’s Women’s Rights Project (WRP), the National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) and the Service Women’s Action Network (SWAN) filed the lawsuit Oct. 8, alleging that the Pentagon failed to respond to a Freedom of Information Act, or FOIA, request seeking records about why the study was ordered, its scope, and what its findings could mean for women working in ground combat jobs.
In December 2025, the Pentagon launched a review into the “effectiveness” of women in ground combat jobs. The review, first reported by NPR, requested data on readiness, training, performance, casualties and more, stirring controversy among those believing it undermined the role women have played in the U.S. military.
Military.com reached out to the Pentagon for comment.
What the Lawsuit Demands
The lawsuit seeks a court order requiring the Pentagon to process the FOIA request and release the requested records.
“Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has repeatedly, without evidence, questioned women’s ability to serve in ground combat, even though senior military leaders from every branch have attested to women’s success,” said Gillian Thomas, senior counsel for ACLU’s WRP, in a statement.
“Now, without explanation, he has commissioned a study of women’s performance and assigned it to a researcher with a record of criticizing women’s combat readiness. The public has a right to know why, and what he plans to do with the results,” Thomas added.
Some 5,000 women have served in ground combat roles since the DOD lifted restrictions in 2016, following a lawsuit challenging the Pentagon’s exclusion policy.
Female recruitment in the Army has remained steady since 2013, with an average of about 10,000 women enlisting annually. In contrast, male enlistments have seen a sharp decline, dropping 35% over the same period—from roughly 58,000 in 2013, to just 37,700 in 2023.
Hegseth’s Views on Women in the Military
As well as ordering a review into women in combat roles, Hegseth has emphasized masculinity in the military by announcing testosterone testing and changing physical eligibility criteria for combat jobs.
Before he became the defense secretary, he told podcaster Shawn Ryan in 2024 that having women in ground combat roles “hasn’t made us more effective.”
“It hasn’t made us more lethal,” Hegseth said. “I’m straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles.”
He later softened his rhetoric, but plaintiffs in this current suit remain skeptical.
“If Hegseth wants to push women out of the military, he cannot hide from the public,” said Lauren Khouri, senior director of workplace justice at NWLC, in a statement. “We’re suing to hold Hegseth accountable for his baseless, sexist and offensive attacks on women service members. These attacks undermine the law and our national security and must end.”
