Trinity Western wins legal victory in fight to open Christian law school
VANCOUVER — A decisive legal victory in British Columbia has put an evangelical Christian university one step closer in its bid to secure recognition for its proposed law school.
The Appeal Court of B.C. ruled in favour of Trinity Western University on Tuesday, describing efforts by B.C.’s law society to deny accreditation to the school’s future lawyers as “unreasonable.”
The dispute centres around the university’s community covenant that bans its students from having sexual relations outside of heterosexual marriage.
In a unanimous decision, a panel of five judges said the negative impact on Trinity Western’s religious freedoms would be severe and far outweigh the minimal effect accreditation would have on gay and lesbian rights.