Trinity Western University School of Law [2013-2018]
- Jun 14, 2018
- 7 min read
Here's the latest news including implications analysis by lawyer Geoffrey Trotter, podcast with TWU’s Bob Kuhn, EFC president’s blog and video, webinar discussion, news releases and more. Below this bulleted list is a series of buttons that allow viewing of additional material.
Implications for the Evangelical Community of the Supreme Court Decision in the Trinity Western University Law School Case. By Geoffrey Trotter, co-counsel for the EFC in its interventions in the TWU law school litigation at all levels of court in British Columbia and at the Supreme Court of Canada (Sept. 11, 2018)
EFC Podcast: Trinity Western's Controversial Community Covenant - With TWU President Bob Kuhn (Aug. 17, 2018)
On TWU making its covenant optional for students: an EFC official statement (Aug. 16, updated Aug. 20, 2018)
TWU Revisits Community Covenant: a statement from TWU (Aug. 14, 2018)
Webinar recording: Unpacking the TWU Supreme Court of Canada decision. Guests: EFC President Bruce Clemenger, legal co-counsel Albertos Polizogopoulos, Justin Cooper of Christian Higher Education Canada (June 27, 2018)
Making Sense of the TWU Court Decision, by EFC President Bruce Clemenger: Part One (on the majority decision, June 21, 2018), Part Two (on the dissenting opinion, June 22), Part Three (on the implications of the decision, June 22)
Unpacking the TWU Decision: An Early Response From Earl Phillips of TWU Law School (audio podcast, June 15, 2018)
TWU Disappointed (news release, June 15, 2018)
EFC and CHEC Disappointed (news release, June 15, 2018)
TWU decision ‘undermines’ freedoms: Archbishop (news release, June 15, 2018)
EFC President Bruce Clemenger responds to Supreme Court decision (video, June 15, 2018)
The Supreme Court decision in Law Society of British Columbia v. TWU (June 15, 2018)
The Supreme Court decision in TWU v. Law Society of Upper Canada (June 15, 2018)
Additional commentary articles are available below offering context on this important case
The EFC continues to encourage supporters to pray for healthy religious freedom and for God’s blessing on all those affected by these issues and court cases.
Issue Summary
rinity Western University is a Christian university in British Columbia and an affiliate of the EFC. After TWU obtained all the formal approvals needed to start its own law school and grant degrees, provincial law societies in British Columbia, Ontario and Nova Scotia voted to create obstacles for such graduates wanting to practise law in those provinces, either by refusing to admit TWU law school graduates or not to consider TWU an accredited school. (Several other provinces including Alberta and New Brunswick have okayed future TWU law graduates.)
Objections centre on the school’s Community Covenant, which has students and faculty pledge to abstain from certain activities and behaviours during their studies including the viewing of pornography, the possession or use of alcohol on campus, and “sexual intimacy that violates the sacredness of marriage between a man and a woman.”
The EFC believes law societies that have voted not to accept TWU law graduates have overstepped their mandates and that such decisions violate the religious freedom of TWU and its graduates.
TWU launched legal challenges in the three provinces where provincial law societies are refusing accreditation. Initial rulings in Nova Scotia, Ontario and B.C. led to appeal rulings. The EFC submitted joint interventions with Christian Higher Education Canada in each of these cases.
The Supreme Court heard final appeals of the Ontario and B.C. cases Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, 2017. The EFC was one of the interveners permitted to appear in the case to support TWU’s right to hold to a community covenant.
Records From The Final Hearings
Read our live tweets from each day
Watch the court presentation by Albertos Polizogopoulos, co-counsel for the EFC
Watch full Supreme Court official footage of the hearings (Polizogopoulos appears at 25:40)
EFC President Bruce Clemenger gave brief video updates on Day 1 and Day 2 of the hearings
There’s also a videorecording of the hearings on CPAC
News Articles Commentary
Still seeking law school, Trinity Western drops sexual 'covenant' for students (National Post, Aug. 14, 2018; related stores at CBC.ca and Vancouver Sun)
Canada’s First Christian Law School Pleads Case to Supreme Court (ChristianityToday.com, Nov. 30, 2017)
TWU’s Battle for Religious Freedom Heats Up (Faith Today, Jul/Aug 2016)
The FT Interview With Bob Kuhn, President of Trinity Western University, Faith Today, May/Jun 2014 (republished on the Faith Today blog, Dec. 15, 2014)
Commentary
Making Sense of the TWU Court Decision Part One, by EFC President Bruce Clemenger (blog post, June 21, 2018)
Unpacking the TWU Decision: An Early Response From Earl Phillips of TWU Law School (audio podcast, June 15, 2018)
TWU Disappointed (news release, June 15, 2018)
EFC and CHEC Disappointed (news release, June 15, 2018)
TWU decision ‘undermines’ freedoms: Archbishop (news release, June 15, 2018)
Three Understandings of State Neutrality, EFC President Bruce J. Clemenger, April 2018
Checking in on the TWU law school case with EFC lawyer Albertos Polizogopoulos, March 2018
Competing Views on State Neutrality, EFC President Bruce J. Clemenger, Jan. 2018
Theological Lessons From the TWU Law School Case, EFC Vice-President David Guretzki, Dec. 2017
EFC Podcast interview with Janet Epp Buckingham, a lawyer who helped develop the original proposal for a law school at Trinity Western, Dec. 2017
The EFC and the Canadian Council of Christian Charities called for a national day of prayer for religious freedom on Nov. 26, 2017. Those prayers are still needed in these months while we await the decision of the Supreme Court.
Popular Opinion or Legal Principle? TWU Case Heard in B.C., EFC President Bruce J. Clemenger, Aug. 2015
Ontario Decision on TWU Law School: Reflections on the Ontario Superior Court’s Decision in TWU v. LSUC, EFC President Bruce J. Clemenger, July 2015
Organizations Free to Maintain Religious Identity, EFC President Bruce J. Clemenger, Feb. 2015
Defending the TWU Dissenters, Marni Soupcoff in National Post, Jan. 2015
Protecting Minority Rights From the Majority, EFC President Bruce J. Clemenger, Nov. 2014
TWU Controversy: Implications for Other Christian Schools and Legal Precedents Support TWU. The May/Jun 2014 issue of the EFC magazine, Faith Today, has several related articles.
Canadian Law Societies: Bastions of Intolerance?, Albertos Polizogopoulos, Jan. 2014
Religious beliefs and practices are constitutionally guaranteed, not “silly” or “stupid”, Don Hutchinson, Nov. 2013
Legal Submissions
EFC and CHEC Legal Factum, Supreme Court of Canada, September 18, 2017
EFC and CHEC Legal Factum, British Columbia Court of Appeal, April 19, 2016
EFC and CHEC Legal Factum, intervention in a Aug. 24, 2015 judicial review in the British Columbia Supreme Court
EFC and CHEC Legal Factum, intervention in a June 1, 2015 judicial review in the Ontario Divisional Court (written legal submissions from other groups in the case are available at outonbayst.org/about/media-news/twu/)
EFC and CHEC Legal Factum, intervention in a Dec. 16-19, 2014 judicial review in the Nova Scotia Supreme Court, Oct. 2014 (written legal submissions from other groups in the case are available at nsbs.org/twu-public-input)
Letters
Law Society of New Brunswick, April 2014
Law Society of Upper Canada, March 2014
Nova Scotia Barristers' Society, Feb. 2014
Law Society of British Columbia, Feb. 2014
Toronto Star, Oct. 2013
Related Provincial Lower Court Cases
British Columbia Case (LSBC v TWU)
The Canadian Press reported Feb. 23, 2017 (National Post, Globe and Mail) that the Supreme Court of Canada has agreed to hear appeals of the Ontario and B.C. cases
The appeal of the Dec. 10, 2015 ruling was heard in early June 2016, and a ruling was released November 1, 2016. The EFC released a news release the same day
EFC and CHEC Legal Factum, British Columbia Court of Appeal, April 19, 2016
EFC media release: B. C. Supreme Court Restores Earlier Law Society Decision to Accredit Trinity Western Law School - 2015-12-10
Text of B. C. Supreme Court Decision in TWU v. Law Society of British Columbia (Dec. 10, 2015)
EFC President Bruce J. Clemenger reflects on the case in an Aug. 25, 2015 article
Joint submission of legal arguments by the EFC and Christian Higher Education Canada, submitted July 27, 2015: EFC-CHEC Legal Factum for B.C.
Read a news release from TWU and its Law School Blog
See related recent news from the Law Society of BC
Nova Scotia Case (TWU v NSBS)
The Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society has said it doesn’t plan to appeal further.
The appeal was heard in early April 2016, and a ruling was released July 26. The EFC responded immediately.
TWU previously received a strongly favourable court ruling in Nova Scotia on Jan. 28, 2015 which agreed with several arguments from the EFC Legal Factum
EFC President Bruce J. Clemenger responded immediately with a news release and a commentary (blog post, Feb. 4, 2015): Organizations Free to Maintain Religious Identity
Commentary from Jan. 28, 2015 by lawyer Albertos Polizogopoulos, who represented the EFC and Christian Higher Education Canada in the case
The Courts of Nova Scotia offer recorded webcasts of the Dec. 16-19, 2014 intervention hearings at courts.ns.ca/Webcasts/webcasts_archive_trials.htm.
2015 articles from mainstream media: Times Colonist, Canadian Lawyer, CTV News, The Globe and Mail, CBC
Ontario Case (TWU v LSUC)
The Canadian Press reported Feb. 23, 2017 (National Post, Globe and Mail) that the Supreme Court of Canada has agreed to hear appeals of the Ontario and B.C. cases
The Ontario Court of Appeal decision was released June 29, 2016 and the EFC responded. TWU has said it will appeal to the Supreme Court.
On July 2, 2015 the Ontario Superior Court ruled against TWU in its dispute with the Law Society of Upper Canada. Although the three-judge panel concluded that “the decision of the [LSUC] does have the effect of interfering with [TWU’s] rights to religious freedom,”the court expressed its view that the infringement was “not unreasonable.”
Responses to the July 2, 2015 ruling were released from TWU and from EFC President Bruce J. Clemenger (online reflection July 7, 2015)
Read the joint submission of legal arguments by the EFC and CHEC: EFC-CHEC Legal Factum for Ontario
