Communists were banned from joining the bar and the Law Society of British Columbia interviewed Rankin at length prior to admitting him to the bar about his views on God, whether he would defend his country if attacked, and whether he was a member of the Communist Party of Canada, then called the Labor-Progressive Party, something he was able to deny as the Communist University Club was an independent and unaffiliated organization. In the wake of the Law Society refusing to admit Gordon Martin to the bar on account of his being an avowed communist, Rankin had to sign a declaration that he was not a communist prior to being allowed to join. He went on to become head of the Law Society in 1979 (a position then known as Treasurer, later known as President).