Edmonton: The requirement for lawyers in Canada to swear an oath of allegiance to the Crown before being admitted to the legal profession is now before the country’s highest court. The Supreme Court of Canada has agreed to hear the Alberta government’s appeal against a ruling that declared the mandatory oath unconstitutional.
The case involves Edmonton-based Amritdhari Sikh lawyer Prabhjot Singh Warring, who sought admission to the Alberta bar after completing his articles in 2022. Warring had no objection to taking oaths concerning his professional responsibilities to the public and his clients. His objection was specifically to the oath of allegiance to the Crown.
Warring has argued that his religious commitment to the Almighty and Sri Guru Granth Sahib, made upon becoming a Khalsa Sikh, conflicts with taking an oath of allegiance to another institution or authority. For him, the issue is not merely about the wording of an oath but about his religious convictions and conscience.
The Alberta Court of King’s Bench rejected his challenge in October 2023. However, on December 16, 2025, the Alberta Court of Appeal overturned that decision, declaring Section 44(2)(a) of the Legal Profession Act unconstitutional and of no force or effect.
The Alberta government has now appealed that ruling to the Supreme Court of Canada. The case has been assigned docket number 42224.
Religious freedom at the centre of the case
The Supreme Court will ultimately have to consider how far the state can require an individual to take an oath when the requirement directly conflicts with deeply held religious beliefs.
The case could have implications beyond Warring’s individual circumstances, raising broader questions about the balance between religious freedom, freedom of conscience and professional requirements in Canada’s legal system.
The matter is particularly significant in Canada’s multicultural and multi-faith society, where the limits of state requirements and the protection of individual religious convictions may come into direct conflict.
