Written by Justine Tee

What is animal LAW?

Animal Law concerns the laws and policies which relate to animals, and the regulation of interactions between humans and animals. It raises fundamental questions about the legal status of animals, and how the interests of animals are protected under the law. Animal lawyers work across a vast range of areas, including strategic litigation, law reform and community legal practice. The field of animal law is growing across Australia, with over 16 universities now offering courses on the subject.

Dr Meg Good is the Senior Program Manager and Legal Counsel at Voiceless, the animal protection institute. She is also an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Tasmania where she coordinates the elective unit ‘Animal Law’. Meg has a PhD in environmental law, and has formerly held positions with various animal law organisations including the Barristers Animal Welfare Panel and the Animal Law Institute. She is currently the Secretary of the Australasian Animal Law Teachers’ and Researchers’ Association.

Mike Rosalky is a Senior Associate for a private law firm and the Legal Counsel for an ICT professional services firm. He also co-founded K & R Animal Law, which he operates online with his friend and colleague Naaman Kranz outside of business hours. He provides legal services to clients all over Australia in matters that are likely to benefit animals, and offers general legal services to clients with a track record of helping animals. Earlier this year, K & R Animal Law also launched their new podcast series “Animal Law Matters”.

INTERVIEW

How would you describe animal law to someone who doesn’t know anything about it?

Meg: Animal law is a dynamic and growing area of the law in Australia, covering a wide range of legal areas concerning animals and the human/animal relationship. As animals are present in so many different areas of our lives, the scope of animal law is consequently quite broad, reaching beyond traditional animal welfare legislation to many other areas of the law, including administrative law, consumer protection law, constitutional law, criminal law, environmental law, and more. Australians interact with animals as owners, consumers and citizens, and these complex relationships are part of the reason why animal law so often raises fascinating and important questions of science, ethics, philosophy and justice.

As a student, were you certain that animal law was the area that you wanted to practice in? If so, how did these aspirations originate? If not, what led you to practice animal law?

Meg: Although I had a passion for animal protection from early childhood onwards,  I originally studied law with the intention of becoming an environmental lawyer.  As animal law wasn’t offered as an elective during my studies, I didn’t realise  that animal law existed until  my final year  when  I attended a public  lecture by an RSPCA prosecutor. I was immediately attracted to it, and although I then commenced a PhD in environmental law, I continued to think about animal law. A year or so into my PhD, I heard that applications were open for the Voiceless Grants program. I applied successfully for a grant of $10,000 to run Tasmania’s first animal law conference to enable Tasmanian law students and lawyers to learn about this important area of the law. The conference was a crucial turning point for me. I was introduced to the wonderful animal law community we have here in Australia, and I was further educated on a number of truly concerning  issues, including how the law operates in many contexts to actively facilitate harm to animals. From there, I became more and more involved in the field on a purely voluntary basis. I was invited to take on roles with the Barristers Animal Welfare Panel and the Animal Law Institute,  and I was a regular speaker in the Voiceless Animal Law Lecture Series.  It was all of this voluntary work which eventually led to my current role at Voiceless.  

I decided to focus my career on animal law so that I could be a part of the social justice movement to reform our legal systems to better represent and protect the interests of animals. Law helps shape our views on what is ethically right and wrong, and in the context of animal protection, law has traditionally operated to justify a wide range of conduct that causes pain and suffering to animals. The status quo is unacceptable, and I strongly believe that through animal law education and animal law reform advocacy we can shift the way animals are valued under the law, and significantly improve the lives of millions of sentient animals across Australia.

Mike: I became a lawyer so I could help animals. That aspiration originated after I became aware of the horrifically cruel, yet legal, treatment of Australian animals who are exploited for food, fibre, secretions, experimentation and entertainment. While it is a crime to harm a pet animal, animals exploited for commercial purposes are almost entirely exempt from the protection of the criminal law. These animals are treated far worse than the most heinous criminals in our society (for example, see www.dominionmovement.com). Yet, the body of science known as animal welfare science clearly demonstrates that these higher order animals experience physical pain in a virtually identical manner to humans, and experience complex emotions (for example, read the book ‘Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel’).

In my opinion, no greater injustice exists in Australia than the legal treatment of animals exploited for commercial purposes. I think lawyers can play a part in ending that injustice by, among other things, critically analysing the legislation and case law that governs the treatment of animals, advocating for law reform to better protect animals, and advocating on behalf of animal interest groups.

Could you give us an overview of a day in your life as an animal lawyer?

Mike: K & R Animal Law’s day-to-day practice involves acting for human clients who have some type of connection with animals, where we think our involvement will benefit animals in some way. In practice, that means that we take on matters in a broad range of practice areas, including:

• Administrative law – Acting for animal-loving clients who have had adverse decisions made against them by government agencies.

• Property law – Acting for clients who dispute the ownership of an animal, as animals are currently classified as property under the law.

• Defamation law – Acting for animal loving clients who have been defamed.

• Criminal law – Advising clients about criminal charges laid against them where their conduct was aimed at benefiting animals.

• Corporate and commercial law – Advising animal charities about corporate structures and commercial arrangements.

• Legislation – Drafting submissions for animal charities about proposed government legislation affecting animals.

Meg: An average day may involve any of the following:

• Providing advice to the team & identifying legal issues;

• Ensuring we are in compliance with our charitable fundraising obligations;

• Reviewing and drafting agreements and other legal documents;

• Reviewing public-facing documents to ensure they contain factually accurate statements and don’t raise any legal issues;

• Creating animal law educational resources;

• Holding networking events for animal lawyers;

• Delivering presentations on topical animal law issues at universities;

• Supervising legal interns and volunteers;

• Liaising with pro bono lawyers;

• Researching the latest updates in animal law.

Mike, we understand that you collaboratively founded your own law firm in 2019. What prompted you to start your own practice?

Mike: Naaman and I met as volunteer lawyers with the Animal Defenders Office. We became friends because our values aligned. Naaman decided that he wanted to start his own law firm and asked me if I wanted to join him in establishing an animal law firm. We wanted to specialise in animal law because we are deeply concerned about the poor treatment of animals in Australia, and we wanted to use our legal skills to assist animals and their human defenders.

How do you balance your responsibilities to K & R Animal Law, the private law firm you work for and the ICT professional services firm you work for?

Mike: To be frank, it is a challenge. Sometimes the work-life balance does get out of balance and there is too much work and not enough life. Doing this for too long leads to burn-out, so it’s important to prioritise health, relationships and leisure if things are out of balance. Sometimes, this means saying ‘no’ to people in order to regain the balance.

What is the most fulfilling part of your job?

Mike: Improving my clients’ quality of life. Navigating the legal and government system can be extremely challenging for some people. Lawyers can add significant value to their clients’ lives by advocating on their behalf and clearly explaining the legal and government process. I find it fulfilling to help my clients in this way.

What has been a highlight in your career?

Mike: As a volunteer lawyer with the Animal Defenders Office (see www.ado.org.au), I assisted a client who was charged with criminal offences. My client’s alleged conduct involved filming acts of animal violence and cruelty and publishing that material. The irony of the matter was that the acts of animal violence and cruelty were mostly legal under Australian law, yet my client was facing up to five years’ imprisonment for allegedly filming and publishing those acts. Ultimately, the charges were dismissed and my client went on to raise significant awareness of the appalling conditions animals are legally subjected to in Australian commercial facilities.

Meg, we understand that you also work as a university lecturer. What has been your experience lecturing in animal law and how did you get into teaching?

Meg: Yes, I’m an Adjunct Lecturer at the UTAS School of Law. I absolutely love teaching at the tertiary level generally, but particularly so in animal law. My first taste of teaching was during my undergraduate degree in two peer support/tutoring programs - then I took on teaching work during my PhD in both the Arts and Law faculties. After the conference I mentioned earlier, the Law School became more aware of animal law and, eventually a unit was offered for the first time to UTAS students. I greatly enjoy lecturing on animal law, as students are usually very engaged with the content, and there are endless issues and ideas to explore!

How do you think the animal law space will develop in the future?

Mike: I think we may see more strategic litigation cases that challenge things like the legal status of animals as property (for example, see the US-based ‘Nonhuman Rights Project’), and the conditions in which animals and humans are treated in factory farming facilities. I also think that at some point governments will start establishing independent agencies for animal welfare. In the best case scenario, these agencies would be responsible for developing the law governing animals to better align with the public’s expectation that animals should be protected from suffering. They would also be responsible for enforcing breaches of the law, such as animal cruelty offences. If these agencies are established, I anticipate that animal law would grow significantly because there would be government resources to support its growth.

Meg: I think there is huge potential for growth in animal law in Australia. There are more lawyers practising animal law across the country than ever before, with almost 20 law firms now offering animal law services. These are mainly small law firms, but there have been some larger law firms involved. For example, Maurice Blackburn Lawyers created an Animal Law Pilot Program a number of years ago, and Clifford Chance have also become involved recently, assisting Voiceless with legal and animal law education work. Australia’s first generalist animal law firm was created a couple of years ago (K & R Animal Law), who work on matters with the potential to benefit animals and provide general legal services to animal advocates. The Animal Law Institute also recently established an Australian-first Anti-Puppy Farm Legal Clinic in Victoria. 

We’ve also seen an increase in animal law courses offered in Australia, with 16 universities currently offering introductory animal law electives, and two offering masters level units. There has similarly been a rise in the number of animal law researchers and postgraduate students, and very recently the Australasian Animal Law Teachers’ and Researchers’ Association was established.   

We are also starting to see the outcomes of the fact that numerous cohorts of law students across the country have studied animal law during their law degrees. Animal law electives have now been offered for 16 years, which means there are far more people working in law, government, politics and non-profit organisations who have an understanding of the important role the law plays in animal protection. 

As a result, there are more law students and lawyers volunteering their time, which has significant flow-on effects. It increases accountability for both government and industry to know that animal lawyers are scrutinising law reform proposals in this space and providing public comment and critique. Knowing that there are lawyers ready, willing and able to challenge and hold them to account is crucial; as we see with the Animal Law Institute’s clinic and its impacts on puppy breeder accountability.  

However, there is a problematic lack of adequate resources and funding for animal law services and initiatives in Australia. Many of Australia’s animal lawyers generously volunteer their time. This makes growth and consistency difficult to maintain, as most animal lawyers already have full time jobs in other areas. There are only a handful of paid animal law positions, and these are rarely available. This is something that will need to change if we want all of the developments we’ve witnessed over the past decade to continue and expand over the years to come. 

Despite this challenge, I am confident that in the future we can expect more job creation, more organisational diversity, and a mainstreaming of animal law as an established area of legal practice. Akin to a degree to the more advanced animal law landscape in the US.

What are your top tips and recommended electives for law students who want to practice animal law in the future?

Mike: First, to be a good animal lawyer, lawyers need to have a broad understanding of the law and its various practice areas. As animal law describes the practice of law that involves animals, or an interest in animals, the matter types can be very broad and range from corporate, commercial, consumer, torts, administrative and criminal, just to name a few. Therefore, to be a good animal lawyer, I think it’s important to gain experience in, or knowledge of, myriad areas of law. I think studying animal law at university is really important too because it gives you a good understanding of animal law’s context and relevant issues.

Second, I think it’s important to be aware that a lot of animal law clients have limited resources and seek legal advice out of the goodness of their hearts because they care about animals. Naaman and I do a fair amount of pro-bono animal law work for this reason. Consequently, it is not necessarily the most lucrative area of law to practice.

Third, I would encourage lawyers who are interested in helping animals to consider ways they can help animals outside of the practice of law. There are many ways people can help animals, such as writing to their local political members advocating for better treatment of animals, writing submissions on proposed government legislation affecting animals, volunteering for an animal charity, taking action recommended by animal charities (for example, see www.animalsaustralia.org/take­_action/), or adopting a plant-based diet (for example, see www.veganeasy.org).

Meg: There are 3 key important things you can do as a law student if you are keen to get involved in animal law. 

Study animal law – Studying animal law gives you a good grounding in the area, and helps you to figure out the specific areas of animal law you may be interested in exploring further. You can access a list of current animal law courses via the Voiceless website: www.voiceless.org.au/animal-law/study-animal-law/    

Volunteer – Volunteering in the space helps you to understand the daily work of an animal lawyer, and establish connections in the area. You can access a list of animal law organisations and law firms offering animal law volunteering opportunities via the Voiceless website: www.voiceless.org.au/animal-law/animal-law-services/   

Develop your legal skills and don’t be afraid to specialise – It is crucial that you properly develop your general legal skills. Many animal law positions are solitary and have minimal or no senior legal supervision. The more experience and expertise you can bring to these positions the better.    

Voiceless will be releasing an Animal Law Careers and Volunteering Guide in 2021. Please email legal@voiceless.org.au if you would like to receive a copy upon release.

As animal law is so broad in scope, a wide range of elective units are relevant. In terms of law electives, I would suggest:

• Environmental law electives, as there are important linkages between the two areas. 

• Criminology could also be helpful as animal cruelty legislation creates criminal offences. 

• Understanding human rights law is relevant to understanding and evaluating calls for recognition of legal rights for animals. 

• Family law and property law could be relevant for those thinking about working in the companion animal space. 

• Anyone thinking of an in-house role may find it useful to study areas of law relevant for working at a non-profit, such as IP, copyright, trademarks, media law, defamation, privacy, tax, advanced contracts, etc.  

There is also a range of degrees that could prove useful for budding animal lawyers to pursue in addition to their law degrees, including:

• Arts - I have found my grounding in Arts very useful, given the focus on analytical thinking and critical writing and research. Within Arts, I think sociology, environmental studies, political science and philosophy are all relevant. 

• Communications - Communications degrees are very helpful given the kind of work usually involved in animal protection non-profits. 

• Science - Science is also relevant given how often animal protection issues involve scientific questions or concepts. 

• Geography: Geography or environmental studies degrees could also be relevant, especially for anyone thinking of working in the wild animal welfare law space.

Do you have any tips in relation to extracurricular activities students should participate in to help them stand out when applying for animal law positions upon graduation?

Mike: I think the main thing is simply showing a passion for wanting to help animals. The more things you can do to help animals in your spare time, the more you will show potential animal law employers that you have a genuine desire to help make the world a better place for animals.

Meg: When I review the applications of prospective volunteers or interns, I take into consideration a wide variety of factors. One of those factors is whether the applicant has demonstrated consistent and meaningful engagement with social justice initiatives, and/or social justice law. As animal law is a growing area in Australia, I definitely don’t consider it a problem if a student has nothing directly related to animal protection or animal law on their CV. That being said, there are some great animal law opportunities for students, and certainly it is a benefit to be able to show engagement with the field. 

Attending events held by animal law organisations is a good way to meet people in the area and learn about topical issues. Organisations running events in the space include the NSW Young Lawyers Animal Law Committee, the Animal Defenders Office, the Animal Law Institute, the Law Institute of Victoria’s Animal Law Committee, Lawyers for Animals and Voiceless. Some of these organisations also offer law student volunteering opportunities. 

Competing in animal law competitions is a fantastic way to learn more about animal law, such as mooting at the Animal Law Institute’s ANIMAL Moot (sponsored by Voiceless) or submitting to the NSW Young Lawyers Animal Law Committee’s student animal law essay competition. 

Another great way to get involved in animal law during your university years is to join or establish an animal law student society. Or alternatively, you could advocate to have an animal law portfolio added to your general law student society, or ask to combine with an existing subject area society that intersects with animal law to some extent – such as an environmental law student society. 

Currently only UNSW and UTAS have such hybrid animal/environmental law student societies, so there is definitely a need for more societies to be established. In fact, Voiceless will be producing a guide later this year to help students navigate the sometimes tricky process of society creation.  

I would also recommend engaging with the animal protection movement more broadly, including through volunteering at farmed animal sanctuaries and animal rescues. This is because animal law doesn’t exist in a vacuum – it’s an important element of a broader social justice movement seeking to achieve better recognition and protection of the interests of animals.

Suggested Electives/activities:

Electives:

• LAW4230 - Animal Law (duh) / LAW5458 - Animal Law, Regulation and Policy

• LAW4313/LAW5314 - International Environmental Law; LAW5382 - Principles of Environmental Law

• LAW4331 - Administrative Law / LAW5014 - Principles of Administrative Law

• LAW1114 - Criminal Law 1 / LAW4332 - Criminal Law and Procedure 2

• LAW4198 - Australian Commercial Law

• LAW4702 - Competition and Consumer Law

• Defamation and Privacy

  • LAW1113 - Tort Law

  • LAW4301 - Advanced Torts / LAW5003 - Principles of Torts

  • LAW4140 - The Media, Defamation and Privacy

• Helps understanding and evaluating calls for recognising legal rights for animal

  • LAW4172 - Human Rights in Australian Law

  • LAW4155/LAW5304 - International Human Rights

• For companion animal space

  • LAW4177 - Introduction to Family Law

  • LAW2112 - Property A

  • LAW3402 - Property B

  • LAW5409 - Principles of Family Law

  • LAW5006 - Principles of Property Law

• For in-house role or working at a non-profit

  • LAW5340 - Intellectual Property

  • LAW4341 - Copyright and Designs

  • LAW5301 - Copyright

  • LAW4704 - Taxation Law

  • LAW4322 - Advanced Taxation Law

Experience/Activities:

• Help animals in ways outside of practising law. Eg: writing to your local political members advocating for better treatment of animals, writing submissions on proposed government legislation affecting animals, taking action recommended by animal charities

• Mooting at the Animal Law Institute’s ANIMAL Moot (sponsored by Voiceless)

• Submitting to the NSW Young Lawyers Animal Law Committee’s student animal law essay competition

• Join/establish an animal law student society, or advocate for an animal law portfolio added to LSS, or ask to combine with an existing subject area society that intersects with animal law to some extent (eg environmental law student society)

• Volunteering at farmed animal sanctuaries, animal rescues and animal charities

• Attending events held by animal law organisations to meet people in the area and learn about topical issues

IN THE NEWS

south korea to give animals legal status to fight abuse and abandonment (The animal reader, 2021)

South Korea plans to change its civil code to grant animals legal status following an increase in animal abuse cases in recent years.

Link to article

victorian animal legal clinic seeks compensation from dodgy breeders (abc news, 2021)

Victorians are spending thousands on vet fees after buying sick pets. A new legal service is taking dodgy breeders to court over health concerns. Breeders of one puppy were forced to pay more than $15,000 in medical costs.

Link to article

learn more about animal law

“animal law matters’ (podcast by k & r animal law)

An Australian podcast by K & R Animal Law that discusses animal law from a legal, philosophical, theoretical and practical perspective.

Link to podcast

Animal Law Toolkit (voiceless, the animal protection institute)

The Animal Law Toolkit is the second edition of the publication by Voiceless which provides a guide to animal law in Australia, and is intended to arm students and legal practitioners with the tools needed to grow animal law.

Link to toolkit

A new animal welfare act for victoria - directions paper: engagement summary report (victoria state govt, april 2021)

“In October 2020, the Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions (DJPR) released a Directions Paper for a new animal welfare Act. The new Act will replace the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (POCTA) Act 1986.

Feedback received from the consultation is informing work to develop draft legislation for a new Act to be considered by the Victorian Parliament. An Exposure Draft of the legislation is planned for release for public feedback in 2022.”

Link to paper