Advocates in Alberta have lost a court battle in their fight against provincial restrictions on medical treatment for transgender youth.

The groups Egale and Skipping Stone had asked a judge to let them make the argument that Premier Danielle Smith’s government acted outside its authority with the law.

Last year, her government used the notwithstanding clause to shield the restrictions from legal challenge.

The 2SLGBTQ+ advocates argued that because doctors who didn’t comply with the new rules face fines or imprisonment, it’s a criminal issue and therefore falls to the federal government — not a provincial one — to oversee.