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Summarised by Centrist
The Law Society of Alberta has dissolved its equity, diversity and inclusion (DEI) committee following the introduction of Alberta’s new “Peterson Law”, which requires professional regulators to remain politically neutral.
The legislation, formally titled the Regulated Professions Neutrality Act, prohibits professional regulatory bodies from offering preferential treatment in order to meet diversity, equity or inclusion targets. It also restricts regulators from requiring professionals to adopt political, cultural or social ideologies unrelated to their professional competence or ethical obligations.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said the legislation was designed to ensure regulators remain focused on professional standards rather than broader political debates. Provincial Justice Minister Mickey Amery said regulators should not impose ideological requirements on professionals where those requirements are unrelated to the practice of their profession.
“If there is a push or a drive from a regulator to impose upon its professionals some sort of political, cultural or social ideology, and it has nothing that relates to the professional competence or ethics of that individual professional, then it will not be permitted to happen in this province,” Amery said.
The Act also restricts mandatory training requirements, such as unconscious bias or cultural competency trainin,g unless the training can be clearly linked to professional competence or ethical standards.
Limited exceptions remain, including cases involving criminal convictions, misuse of professional authority, threats of violence or sexual misconduct.
A spokesperson for the Law Society of Alberta said diversity-related goals could still be addressed through other strategic committees, but there would no longer be a standalone DEI committee.
Editor’s note: If a similar law were adopted in New Zealand, it could have major implications for professional regulators. Several professions currently require cultural competency training, particularly relating to Māori health frameworks and the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi or Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
A neutrality-style law similar to Alberta’s could limit regulators’ ability to require professionals to affirm particular interpretations of Treaty obligations or broader social theories related to colonisation, privilege or systemic power where those views are contested.
Under such a framework, regulators would likely still be able to require respectful treatment of Māori patients and knowledge of relevant cultural practices where directly related to professional care.
However, requirements that compel agreement with specific political or historical interpretations could face greater legal scrutiny if they were not clearly tied to professional competence or ethics.
