A General Right to Conscientious Exemption
Beyond Religious Privilege

A sustained argument that a general right to conscientious exemption should be equally available to religious and non-religious objectors alike.

John Adenitire (Author)

9781108478458, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 16 July 2020

344 pages
23.6 x 15.8 x 2.5 cm, 0.64 kg

'Dr Adenitire's path-breaking and thought-provoking book provides the most methodologically rigorous defence of normative and interpretative claims to a qualified right to exemption from any legal obligation on conscientious grounds, not limited to religious matters, under the laws of liberal societies, including the current law of the USA, Canada, the ECHR and the UK. Its challenge to received opinion should be read by policy-makers, lawyers and political theorists.' David Feldman, Emeritus Rouse Ball Professor of English Law, Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge, and Emeritus Fellow, Downing College, Cambridge

The book argues that there is in the US, Canada and UK, a general right to conscientious exemption available to a person who objects to any legal obligation whatsoever on the basis of a religious or non-religious conscientious belief. The book provides a liberal defence of this right and argues that it should be considered a defining feature of a liberal democracy. A general right to conscientious exemption is a legal right to conscientiously object to any obligation imposed by law and to receive from a court an exemption from complying with such obligation. The general right defended in the book is not an absolute right. A court may refuse to grant an exemption if doing so would disproportionately impact the rights of others or the public interest. The book suggests how the general right should be balanced against important rights, such as non-discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

1. Introduction
2. The General Right to Conscientious Exemption in US Law
3. The General Right to Conscientious Exemption in US Law: Beyond Religious Privilege? 4. The General Right to Conscientious Exemption in Canadian Law
5. The General Right to Conscientious Exemption in Canadian Law: Beyond Religious Privilege?
6. The General Right to Conscientious Exemption in UK Law
7. The General Right to Conscientious Exemption in UK Law: Beyond Religious Privilege? 8. The Liberal Model of Conscientious Exemptions
9. Balancing the General Right with Sexual Orientation Discrimination
10. Conclusion.

Subject Areas: Constitutional & administrative law [LND], Laws of Specific jurisdictions [LN], Law [L]