This chapter begins with a summary of the factors that have made an historical contribution to fostering the diversity and dissent conducive to generating conscientious objections in Canada, a country with a distinctively Christian cultural heritage. It then identifies and examines some key principles, doctrines and definitions before beginning an assessment of what now meets the legal definition of ‘religion’, belief or ‘matter of conscience’ in this jurisdiction. It examines the developments in law and policy, relating to the initial recognition of incidences of conscientious objection, as a precursor to an outline of the international and domestic law currently providing the relevant legal and regulatory framework. This is followed by a review of the impact of fundamental human rights on dissent in general and on conscientious objection in particular. All of which leads to the main business of this chapter: a profile of contemporary national caselaw relating to conscientious objection; in accordance with those areas of social activity where the incidence is greatest—public health, public social care, public education, national defence/asylum seekers, employment and commercial services—in order to identify trends, emerging principles and other characteristics that appear jurisdictionally significant.