Animals and the Law: Multiple Perspectives

The UCLA Animal Law Program is proud to announce its upcoming conference, Animals and the Law: Multiple Perspectives, which will be held at the UCLA School of Law on May 16, 2012 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. As detailed below, we have an exciting series of panels featuring leading scholars and practitioners in the fields of philosophy, food policy, and First Amendment law. Admission to the conference is free; parking is $11.00. Seating is limited, therefore those interested in attending are asked to R.S.V.P. using our online form at http://tinyurl.com/multipleperspectives. Parking and directions to the event will be provided upon receipt of registrations.

PANEL ONE: Moral Philosophy: Implications for Animals and Animal Law

Our first panel examines moral philosophical theories that consider the moral importance of animals and humans’ behavior in regards to animals, which is important for guiding and justifying legal reform on behalf of animals. Speakers include: Matthew Calarco, Alice Crary, Gary L. Francione, and Gary Steiner.

PANEL TWO: Food Policy: Implications for Animals and Animal Law

Our second panel considers specific aspects of food law and policy, such as private agreements between food retailers and their suppliers, regulation of antibiotics, and antitrust law enforcement in contexts that affect animals. Speakers include: Michael Roberts, Susan A. Schneider, and William H. Stallings.

PANEL THREE: First Amendment: Implications for Animals and Animal Law

Our third and final panel focuses on the First Amendment. First Amendment law is a factor in many animal contexts, including the legality of proposed laws that would limit access to agricultural business practices and computer game/applications that invite users to engage in animated activities, such as training dogs for dog-fighting, that may desensitize the user or otherwise exacerbate the problems of commodification of animals and permission to engage in cruelty. There is also the question of whether there is a disproportionate silencing of First Amendment speech of those who engage in protest on behalf of animals and those who care about animals. Speakers include: Sherry F. Colb, Michael Dorf, Claudia Haupt, and Seth Kreimer.

 

UCLA Animal Law Society Presents: Seeing Red

The UCLA School of Law’s Animal Law Society and Environmental Law Society are proud to announce that world-renowned primatologist, Dr. Biruté Mary Galdikas, will speak at the UCLA School of Law this Thursday evening, April 19, 2012. For almost four decades, Dr. Galdikas has studied and worked closely with the orangutans of Indonesian Borneo in their natural habitat, and is today the world’s foremost authority on the orangutan.  She leads the organization Orangutan Foundation International, www.orangutan.org, and has been featured on the cover of National Geographic twice for her work with these magnificent creatures.

Unfortunately, as a result of poaching and habitat destruction, viable orangutan populations are on the edge of extinction and could be gone within the next 10 years.  As President of OFI, Dr. Biruté Mary Galdikas has studied orangutans longer than any other person in human history and has worked ceaselessly to save orangutans and forests, and to bring orangutans and their plight to the attention of the world.

Please join us for this special event!

This event is sponsored by:

UCLA GSA Sustainable Resource Center
UCLA Center for Tropical Research
The Animal Law Society at UCLA School of Law
The Environmental Law Society at UCLA School of Law
UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability

 

Welcome NALC Competitors and Guest Judges!

The UCLA Animal Law Program extends a warm welcome to everyone visiting our beautiful campus this weekend to participate in the Center for Animal Law Studies at Lewis & Clark’s 9th Annual National Animal Law Competitions! Special thanks go to Liberty Malkani and Laura Handzel from the Center for their tireless efforts in organizing the event, as well as members of the UCLA Animal Law Society for their assistance.

Best of luck to all of the competitors!

 

9th Annual National Animal Law Competitions Start Next Week!

From February 24-26, 2012, the UCLA Animal Law Program will have the honor of hosting the Lewis & Clark’s Center for Animal Law Studies’ 9th Annual National Animal Law Competitions (NALC)! The NALC provides law students from schools across the county an opportunity to develop knowledge in the field of animal law while honing their written and oral advocacy skills. The event features three separate competitions:

1. Legislative Drafting & Lobbying Competition;
2. Closing Argument Competition; and,
3. Appellate Moot Court Competition.

To view a schedule of the events, please click HERE. Members of the public are invited to attend the final competition rounds taking place at the UCLA School of Law on Sunday, February 26, 2012, as well as the NALC Awards Ceremony that will follow.

 

Using Political Process for Shelter Reform

The UCLA Animal Law Program is pleased to announce its next event: Using the Political Process for Shelter Reform, which will feature a presentation by leading shelter expert Nathan J. Winograd.

Nathan J. Winograd

Nathan is the Director of the national No Kill Advocacy Center. He is a graduate of Stanford Law School, a former criminal prosecutor and attorney, held a variety of leadership positions including director of operations for the San Francisco SPCA and executive director of the Tompkins County SPCA, two of the most successful shelters in the nation. He has spoken nationally and internationally on animal sheltering issues, has written animal protection legislation at the state and national level, has created successful No Kill programs in both urban and rural communities, and has consulted with a wide range of animal protection groups including some of the largest and best known in the nation. Nathan is the author of three books, Redemption, Irreconcilable Differences, and All American Vegan (co-written with his wife, Jennifer). Redemption won five national book awards and redefined the animal protection movement in the United States.

In his presentation, Nathan will discuss ways to get animal control to shift from a reactive, public health model of sheltering based on killing, to a proactive one which saves over 90% of all animals, returning “euthanasia” to its dictionary definition. He will also explore how to reform your local shelter to end the killing through an advocacy and political campaign, debunking the myths that allow the current paradigm of killing to continue.

Please join us for this event, which will be held on March 13, 2012 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in Room 1347 at the UCLA School of Law. There is no charge to attend the event, but it costs $11.00 to park at UCLA. Space is limited to individuals who have pre-registered due to the size of the room in which the event will be held. To submit a request to register for this event, please complete our online registration form at http://bit.ly/zbJo04. If you are an attorney attending the event and wish to receive MCLE credit, please indicate such in the form. Attorneys wishing to receive MCLE credit should arrive early so that we can process the necessary paperwork.

Registrants will be notified of the status of their requests within one week of the submission. For further details about this event, please contact the UCLA Animal Law Program at animallaw@law.ucla.edu.

Directions to the UCLA School of Law:
Take the 405 to the Sunset Boulevard exit.
Sunset Boulevard (east) to Hilgard Avenue, turn right.
Follow Hilgard Avenue to the Westholme Drive (second light) entrance to the campus.
Turn right on Westholme Drive.
The parking kiosk is immediately on the right.
Please tell the attendant that you are attending an event at the Law School, and you will be directed to the nearest available parking lot. The parking charge per vehicle is $11.00.

UCLA School of Law is a State Bar of California approved MCLE provider.

 

Activism Unleashed: Sutter’s Friends

As mentioned in our previous post, provisions of California’s shelter laws known as the Hayden Law are under attack with a proposed repeal by Governor Jerry Brown as part of the 2012-2013 California Budget. For our readers who are interested in fighting the proposed repeal, we encourage you to visit and “Like” the Facebook Community Sutter’s Friends to find the latest news about the proposed repeal, a sample letter that may be used to draft your own letter of opposition, contact information for our elected officials and tips on effective legislative advocacy, links to petitions you can sign, featured articles by shelter law experts on the proposed repeal, including our own UCLA Law Professor Taimie L. Bryant and No Kill Advocacy Center’s Nathan J. Winograd, and much more.

 

Using the Political Process to Reform Animal Control

SAVE THE DATE: The UCLA Animal Law Program is pleased to announce that on March 13, 2012 it will be hosting a presentation by Nathan Winograd titled “Using the Political Process to Reform Animal Control.” Given the recently announced proposed repeal of provisions of the Hayden Law, California’s laws that govern our shelters, the timing of Nathan’s visit could not be better. To learn more about the history of Hayden, please read Nathan’s recent blog post “California Shelter Animals Under Attack.”

What is at risk in the proposed repeal? Permanent loss of the requirement to provide prompt and necessary veterinary care. Permanent loss of the requirement to hold animals for an extended period to increase opportunites for redemption and adoption. Permanent loss of the requirement to post lost and found lists. And, among other things, permanent loss of the requirement to provide care for animals other than cats and dogs, such as rabbits, hamsters, and other animals commonly kept as pets.

A rationale that has been offered for the Governor’s proposed repeal is that there has been a paradigm shift in our shelters, and that the provisions are no longer needed because shelters will comply with the provisions on their own. Our take on this is that, even if many shelters have adopted Hayden Law principles, many have not. Just as we retain laws against murder even though few people commit murder, we need to retain the Hayden Law even if it is a minority of shelters that ignore principles of basic decency toward animals. But, as those who have attended our programs on issues impacting companion animals know and have reported, it is not possible to contend with any credibility that there has been a complete paradigm shift in animal sheltering in California. Animals continue to die in cages from untreated illness. Basic acts of kindness, such as providing blankets to animals in inclimate weather (when many blankets have been donated), have been deliberately denied.

The Hayden provisions found to be “reimbursable state mandates” have been suspended since Schwarzenegger enacted his 2009 budget. There is, however, a distinct difference between limited suspension and repeal. With a repeal, the provisions will be completely removed from our laws, thereby forever denying shelter animals the chance to share in the future economic recovery of our state.

If you would like to contact Governor Brown to express your opposition to the proposed repeal, please use any of the following means of contacting him. In articulating your opposition, remember the words of Mahatma Ghandi: “Whenever you have truth it must be given with love, or the message and the messenger will be rejected” — in other words, be respectful in expressing your opposition and let your message be clear and focused on what is at stake for the animals.

• CALL Governor Brown at (916) 445-2841 (9 am to 5 pm)
• FAX your letter of opposition (916) 558-3177
• MAIL your letter of opposition to Governor Jerry Brown, c/o State Capitol, Suite 1173, Sacramento, CA 95814
• EMAIL the Governor’s office at http://gov.ca.gov/m_contact.php (choose BUDGET as subject)
• POST to Governor Brown’s Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/jerrybrown
• TWEET to Governor Brown’s Twitter page at @JerryBrownGov
• SIGN the Change.org petition opposing the proposed repeal at http://www.change.org/petitions/governor-jerry-brown-refuse-to-repeal-any-provisions-of-the-hayden-law
• CONTACT your local representative and urge them to oppose the proposed repeal. If you do not know who your representative is or do not have their contact information, you may enter your zip code in the search box on the following site to get that information: http://leginfo.ca.gov/yourleg.html

 

Bruce Wagman, Animal Shelter Litigation

Another round of many thanks to our speaker Bruce Wagman, who also has graciously agreed to make his PowerPoint presentation available to our participants. Thanks to all who helped make our event a success! Stay tuned for future events and news.

 

Sheldon Eisenberg, Animal Shelter Litigation

Many thanks to our speaker Sheldon Eisenberg, who has graciously agreed to make his PowerPoint presentation available to our participants. Bruce Wagman’s PPT slides soon to follow!

 

Thank You!

The UCLA Animal Law Program sends a warm thanks to everyone who attended our event Animal Shelter Litigation last night and showed your support for the excellent work of Bruce Wagman and Sheldon Eisenberg and your dedication to helping the animals of Los Angeles County! The handouts provided by the speakers will remain available for viewing and download at http://tinyurl.com/ucladocs.

For those at the event last night who asked about resources concerning making public records requests, two great sources are the Los Angeles Times’ Citizens’ Guide to Acquiring California Public Records and the Los Angeles Times’ Pocket Guide to the California Public Records Act. A third great resource, and one that is specific to public records act requests to shelters, is ShelterTrak, which has links to actual PRA requests to LA shelters and documents obtained through PRA requests.

Attorneys and rescuers interested in participating in a discussion and action group for matters concerning animal shelters, please contact us at animallaw@law.ucla.edu and we will create a discussion list for collaboration.

Stay tuned for announcements for future events–we hope to see you there!