Canadian court: Law society must accept Christian attorneys
The Law Society of British Columbia must recognize Trinity Western University’s (TWU) future law school graduates, according to a unanimous opinion the British Columbia (B.C.) Court of Appeals issued Tuesday.
“The TWU community has a right to hold and act on its beliefs, absent evidence of actual harm,” a five-judge panel wrote. “To do so is an expression of its right to freedom of religion.”
The decision is the latest chapter in TWU’s years-long battle to open Canada’s first Christian law school. In December 2013 the provincial law society approved the university’s plans, but a 2014 members referendum revoked it over concerns that the TWU community covenant—which holds students to orthodox Christian behavioral standards, including heterosexual marriage—is discriminatory....