Companion Animal Law

NOTE: This course is available in-person for JD/LLM/MSL students, or as an Online Section designed for LLM and MSL Distance Students only. Each section has its own course description. Check the current catalog or WebAdvisor to see which section is offered in any given year. See the note* below about eligibility for the Online Section for JDs, MSLs, and residential LLMs and MSLs .

Companion Animal Law - Professor Mead

• Course Number: LAW-446 In-Person Section ONLY
• Course Type: Foundational
• Credits: 2
• Enrollment Limit: Determined by the Registrar

• Description: This engaging course delves into the ever-expanding laws regulating companion animals. Through lively discussions and interactive activities, we explore the vast landscape of US laws that regulate the animals we live with. A few topics covered include: legislative bans on dog chaining; regulation of exotic pets; pets’ access to public spaces; maintaining pet chickens in urban areas; and mandatory spay-neuter ordinances. We study the impact on individual pet owners, society at large, and the companion animals themselves.

  The final grade for this course will be based on a semester-long project. Each student will spend the semester researching and analyzing a companion animal law topic. This course recognizes that modern lawyer advocates use electronic multimedia platforms to communicate with the public. To build these communication skills, students will design and launch a comprehensive website to educate the public about their chosen animal law subject.

• Prerequisite: none
• Evaluation Method: Participation (including presentation); written analysis of selected topic; and website creation
• Capstone: Capstone credit is an option. The student must conduct sufficient research and writing to meet the capstone requirements. Students seeking capstone credit should inform the professor at the beginning of the semester to ensure the student meets the capstone requirements.
• WIE: yes

 

Companion Animal Law - Professor Frasch

• Course Number: LAW-446 In-Person Section ONLY
• Course Type: Foundational
• Credits: 2
• Enrollment Limit: Determined by the Registrar

• Description:  Companion animals are perhaps that category of animals the everyday person encounters more than any other. They have increasingly become a more prominent part of people’s lives and are considered by many as a member of the family unit. Yet, despite the surge in the population of companion animals over the past thirty years as well as their unique relationship with humans, the law has not always kept stride with the increasing complexity of the field, nor does it always reflect the special nature of the companion animal/human bond. Together, we will explore this fascinating dissonance.

  At its core, this seminar provides an intensive examination of contemporary companion animal legal, ethical, and policy issues in the American judicial and legislative arenas. It introduces students to many of these evolving issues, including, but not limited to, service and support animals, breed specific legislation, pet trusts, state regulation of pets and pet ownership, and some of the broader, yet related, contextual issues that warrant investigation. In doing so, the course explores the challenges and opportunities available to advocates interested in companion animal issues.

  Please note: we will not cover the following topics as they are already covered extensively in other classes including Animals in the Law and Crimes Against Animals. These topics include crimes against companion animals (except we will examine “the Link”), torts involving harm to companion animals (e.g., vet malpractice or someone assaulting your animal), and family law custody issues.

• Prerequisite: none
• Evaluation Method: One paper, one class presentation; class participation
• Capstone: yes
• WIE: yes

 

Companion Animal Law - Professor Megan Senatori

• Course Number: LAW-446 LLM and MSL Distance Students Only *
• Course Type: Foundational
• Credits: 3
• Enrollment Limit: Determined by the Registrar

• Description: Studies estimate that more than half of people globally have at least one companion animal. This course provides an intensive examination of contemporary companion animal law and policy issues in the judicial and legislative arenas focusing on U.S. law, with consideration of the laws of other countries on a comparative basis. Together with the surge in the population of companion animals over the past thirty years, households with animals now commonly regard their companion animals as members of the human family. Yet, the law still typically categorizes companion animals as property. Moreover, the law’s treatment of companion animals tends to vary based upon the context in which humans interact with them, whether as family members, as entertainment, as research subjects, and more. This course introduces students to the diverse legal and policy issues that affect companion animals. Among the topics students will examine include: how the law defines which animals are classified as “companion animals”; anti-cruelty laws; the link between animal cruelty and domestic violence/intimate partner violence; tort laws relating to injury or death of a companion animal, including the measure of damages; government regulation of companion animals, including seizure and destruction; working companion animals; animal shelter law; custody disputes, estate planning and more. In doing so, this course explores the challenges and opportunities available to advocates interested in companion animal protection.

• Prerequisite: none
• Evaluation Method: Discussion board posts; memos; quizzes/ and a final project
• Capstone: no
• WIE: no

Notes for LC JDs, MSLs, and residential LLMs and MSLs:

*This class is for online LLM and MSL students. In-person students may petition the Associate Dean of Students, Libby Davis, and Global Animal Law and Advanced Degree Programs Director, Raj Reddy, to take the online version if they have a compelling reason for doing so: eadavis@lclark.edu and rajreddy@lclark.edu

Those students should consult the distance learning policy prior to signing up for distance learning courses.