Richard Moon Public Lecture

The Public Law Research Group presents a public lecture from Professor Richard Moon, Distinguished University Professor and Professor of Law at the University of Windsor, titled “Can the state be neutral in matters of religion?”

The Canadian courts, while affirming the importance of state neutrality in matters of religion, have not enforced the neutrality requirement in a consistent way. Behind the courts’ partial or inconsistent application of the religious neutrality requirement lies a complex conception of religious commitment in which religion is viewed as both an aspect of the individual’s identity and as a set of judgments or beliefs made by the individual about truth and right. The challenge for the courts is to find a way to fit this complex conception of religious commitment (as deeply held or foundational) and its value (as a source of meaning, purpose, and identity for the individual and group) into a constitutional framework that relies on a distinction between individual choices or commitments that should be protected as a matter of liberty, and individual attributes or traits that should be respected as a matter of equality. The constitutional framework (and perhaps more deeply, our conception of rights) imposes this distinction, between judgment and identity, on the rich and complex experience of religious commitment.

About Richard Moon

Richard Moon is Distinguished University Professor and Professor of Law at the University of Windsor. His research focuses on freedom of expression and freedom of conscience and religion.  He has been the recipient of both the law school and university-wide teaching awards, the Mary Lou Dietz Award for contributions to the advancement of equity in the university and community, and The Sir Muhammad Zafrulla Khan Distinguished Public Service Award (The Amadiyya Muslim Jama’at), Toronto, July 15, 2023. He has held a number of academic positions including President of the Canadian Law and Society Assn.