How many times have young activists, sometimes just out of high school, stopped me and asked "What is the best way to help animals?" I used to tell them: "Go to law school, the way I did, and make the legal system work for animals." I say that less now.

In the courts, an animal and a chair are often valued equally. That's where Fran Ortiz steps in, as she explains in her ALDF blog "What is a Dog's Worth?"

Horse slaughter for human consumption has been outlawed in the United States for many years, but a recent push by the animal agriculture lobby aims to open the slaughterhouse doors to horses once again.

ALDF Demands Department of Transportation Cease and Desist its Violations of Migratory Bird Treaty Act and National Environmental Policy Act

Love animals? Ever wish you went to law school? Now you can learn all about animal law, without the whopping student loans! With 30 Second Animal Law, ALDF attorneys and animal law experts will answer your questions… in 30 seconds or less!

As the days grow warmer here in Northern California, the Animal Legal Defense Fund docket is heating up with innovative ways to fight animal cruelty.

In this continuing series of updates on former SALDF members, ALDF is proud to spotlight Katie Barnett.

Animal Legal Defense Fund
Cotati, California

Sole Responsibility is to Litigate Animal Cruelty Cases

Read reviews of the best books in the animal world and discuss animal-themed books, films, and animal law issues. Join ALDF's Animal Book Club!

Meyer Glitzenstein & Crystal
Washington, D.C.

Today’s daily action for National Justice for Animals Week is: Fight animal abuse from your home computer.

Today’s daily action for National Justice for Animals Week is: Help ALDF Help Animals

Today’s daily action for National Justice for Animals Week is to make news for animals!

Each year ALDF's Advancement of Animal Law Scholarships are awarded to members of Student Animal Legal Defense Fund chapters based upon a commitment to advancing ALDF’s mission.

Anyone who cares about animals needs to understand what ractopamine is, why factory farmers use it, and how little the FDA does to protect animals and the general public.

Historically, the law has treated companion animals like replaceable property, worth only their "market value." But things are starting to change, thanks in part to attorneys like David Zaft.

Animal Legal Defense Fund's annual study ranks laws across the country.

Undercover Investigation Leads to Landmark Florida “Public Nuisance” Lawsuit

A dark world of animal abuse is proliferating in Florida. Known as "backyard slaughter," animals are illegally slaughtered and butchered on makeshift farms. The banned meat is then sold on the black market.

New Mexico Drops Local Cruelty Ordinance at the Behest of Animal Testing Facility

Regardless of how you voted in the presidential election, if you are someone who cares about the welfare of animals, you’ll have to agree that November 6, 2012 was a bad day at the polls.

In California, when a dog, cat or other companion animal is negligently or intentionally injured, the animal’s legal owner may now attempt to recover compensation for the treatment and care of the animal.

Students are the future of animal law, and ALDF is thrilled about the animal law courses Jerry Simonelli is offering at both the University of Windsor, in Canada, and at Wayne State University, in Detroit, Michigan.

The Animal Law Society is UCLA’s SALDF chapter, comprised of several officers and a wider group of UCLA law students interested in animal legal issues.

In a landmark ruling for animals, an Oregon appellate court recognizes animals as sentient beings who qualify as victims for sentencing purposes.

Animal Welfare Institute
Washington, D.C.

Can we realistically expect judges to render trail-blazing pro-animal decisions in the afternoon when they dined on animals’ flesh in the morning?

Animal Legal Defense Fund’s 2012 Report Ranks Laws Across the Country; B.C., Newfoundland & Labrador Show Most Improvement

The California ban is a basic prohibition on torturing animals to make them taste better. I was shocked to hear officials suggesting they would not enforce the ban.

This study by the Animal Legal Defense Fund underscores the often-considerable differences that exist between the animal protection laws of the provinces and territories.

Animal Legal Defense Fund Asks Attorney General Harris to Take on Local Chefs, Industry Insiders Who Claim Force-Fed Foie Gras is "Humane"

Criminal justice involving a crime against an animal should literally mean that each and every animal is significant and is worth the time, energy, and investment of a thorough investigation.

In this continuing series of updates on former Student Animal Legal Defense Fund members, ALDF is proud to spotlight Emily Davidsohn.

Please contact your Senators, urging them to pass A3431D as written to ban devocalization and protect New York’s beloved animals today.

Animal Legal Defense Fund Asks OSHA to Require Barriers Between Trainers and Dangerous Animals at Facilities Like SeaWorld

Compassion Over Killing (COK), Cal-Cruz Hatcheries, Inc., and its president, Brian Collins, have entered into a settlement to resolve all claims relating to an unfair business practices lawsuit based on alleged animal cruelty at the hatchery.

Animal Legal Defense Fund and Compassion Over Killing Claim Victory in Lawsuit Against Cal-Cruz Based on Undercover Investigation Revealing Animal Cruelty

On July 1st, California's force-fed foie gras ban will take effect, and the state will take its place as the first to prohibit this diseased and inhumane product.

The Animal Legal Defense Fund's Advancement of Animal Law Scholarships are awarded to second- and third-year law student members of Student Animal Legal Defense Fund chapters based upon demonstrated commitment to ALDF's mission.

Congratulations to ALDF's 2012 Advancement of Animal Law Scholarship recipients!

As part of a school project, several Cyber Academy students recently made a presentation to the Rio Rancho Governing Body urging legislators to consider animal abuser registry legislation in their January session.

Government excludes captive orca from Endangered Species Act protections

I've written in the past about how important it is for animal cruelty prosecutors to "take the high road" and be scrupulously ethical. As I've studied and considered the issue further, it has occurred to me that an even more fundamental ethical issue presents itself with disturbing frequency -- the failure of prosecutors to prosecute animal cruelty adequately or at all.

"Law and animals" is a novel field of legal research which examines how human society deals with animals and how such treatment is reflected in the law. The application process closes June 15, 2012 for the autumn semester 2012.

Life is a terrible, depressing existence for chimpanzees caught in the web of medical research and testing.

Animal Legal Defense Fund Represents Farmed Animal Sanctuaries Who Rescued Almost 4,500 Birds

You know you've crossed into the Twilight Zone when celebrity chefs who promote the sale of foie gras, a "delicacy" consisting of the intentionally enlarged livers of force-fed ducks, claim to be victims.

Will Tony stay or will he go?

San Bernardino County District Attorney Michael A. Ramos and Senator Bill Emmerson, R-Hemet, recently addressed state legislators on SB 1145, a bill that seeks to increase the fines levied against participants and spectators of illegal cockfights.

Wayne County, Michigan
Act now!

Federal Poultry Products Inspection Act Requires USDA to Prohibit Adulterated Livers from Entering Food Supply

When the Animal Legal Defense Fund sought to ensure compliance by the Palm Springs Animal Shelter with state and local laws regarding the animals in its care, we were fortunate to get this kind of tireless assistance from Evan Dwin.

To me, a hero is someone who risks personal harm or loss (physical, financial, societal) to do what he or she believes is right.

This summer Matthew Liebman and I are excited to be teaching an intensive course at Lewis & Clark Law School entitled Animal Law Litigation.

Animal protection law takes effect this July.

Several months ago I read a story in the newspaper that stuck with me. It was about a man that shot and killed a 14-foot, 880-pound alligator in Texas. It wasn't the subject of the article that stuck with me, but rather the profession of the man that killed the alligator. He was an attorney.

Steer tailing and horse tripping are tortuous events that have been banned in California and at least eight other states. It is time for the Minnesota State Legislature to step up and ban these rodeo activities. They are animal cruelty, plain and simple.

University of Akron SALDF students sponsor an event aimed at reducing stress during finals week.

The University of Baltimore School of Law SALDF chapter is committed to advancing animal protection and advocating for animals within their community.

Last week I was forced to watch a bear, Ben, pace in his pathetic concrete and chain link enclosure in North Carolina. His sadness and mental and physical anguish is palpable.

Urge the USDA not to renew the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) license of Jambbas Ranch in Fayetteville, N.C. due to its repeated and ongoing violations, resulting in the suffering of Ben, a solitary bear, and the other animals kept there.

Roadside Zoo Allowed to Subject Bear and Other Animals to Inhumane Conditions Despite Repeated Violations of Welfare Laws

First-of-its-Kind Legislative Strike Against Laws that Chill Whistleblowing on Farms

Please take a moment to urge Governor Otter to support future strengthening of the animal cruelty law with provisions for felony convictions on the first offense and meaningful penalties for violators.

Take action! While Idaho's new law is a step in the right direction, it lacks provisions for felony convictions on the first offense and meaningful penalties for violators.

The Nonhuman Rights Project is the only organization working toward actual Legal rights for members of species other than our own.

Michael A. Tabor of Branson, Missouri tied a 9-month-old colt to the back of a minivan and drove at speeds approaching 35 MPH. The reason? He wanted to halter break this poor young horse.

The Wall Street Journal recently reported that "Every Friday morning, a small courtroom in this Texas city becomes a kennel of jurisprudence." The city has indeed found a novel way of dealing with the animal-related cases that were on the rise.

ALDF Demands an End to Owner's Illegal Possession of the Big Cat

Around New Year's Day, OR7, a lone gray wolf from a pack in Oregon, crossed into Northern California, making him the first such wolf in California in nearly 90 years. Now California has been thrust into the debate about how to manage gray wolves.

It's easy to see why legions of journalists and bloggers have gleefully jumped on the pink slime bandwagon, offering their commentary on the massive backlash.

Urge the National Marine Fisheries Service to include captive members of Lolita's Southern Resident pod in Endangered Species Act protections.

Several federal wildlife investigators cracked an international smuggling ring that trafficked for years in sawed-off rhinoceros horns, which fetch stratospheric prices in Vietnam and China for their supposed cancer-curing powers.

Shocking Fatalities Among Monkeys at Lab Prompt Inquiry to Cambridge Public Health Department

Food safety risks, animal abuse, and illegal working conditions are rampant on factory farms -- and the corporate agriculture lobby is attempting to pass so-called "ag gag" laws in several states -- laws which would make it illegal to photograph or videotape at agricultural facilities.

Producing foie gras, a delicacy only the uber-rich normally eat, equals animal cruelty.

Because dolphins, porpoises, and whales are so intelligent and should be regarded as "non-human persons," a group of scientists, ethicists, and animal welfare groups has proposed a bill of rights for them, advocating for greater protection under the law.

Bill Would Provide New Defenses to Animal Abusers

For Seaquarium Owners, Exploiting an Endangered Whale Is Just Business as Usual

As an undergraduate at University of North Carolina, Elizabeth Overcash led an animal interest group called Helping Paws.

Do you know where your food comes from? Let's hope not from Iowa.

If foxes and rabbits have rights, then is a fox guilty of murder for eating a rabbit?

Last year, "Windchill's Law" was introduced in the Wisconsin Senate, but it fizzled as the legislative session ended. In a continued effort to strengthen animal abuse laws, state legislators are trying to revive the bill during the current legislative session.

Why big ag is working so hard to keep what goes on behind factory farm gates a secret.

Legal victory stops systematic abuses at a Kentucky animal shelter.

Kentucky Woman Represented by the Animal Legal Defense Fund Had Sued County for Failure to Protect Shelter Animals as Mandated by State Law

On March 2, Iowa governor Terry Branstad caved to the factory farming industries and signed House File 589, an "ag gag" law designed to keep the public in the dark about the cruelty that pervades modern animal agriculture.

Lewis & Clark Law School is proud to announce the launch of the world's first Animal LL.M. Program. The program will start in the Fall of 2012.

In order to effectively prosecute those who harm animals there needs to be a collaborative effort among agencies and individuals. Animal cruelty cases are unique because none of the "victims" are able to tell the authorities what happened. Therefore, there is a need for the expertise of a veterinarian or other animal health care professional in nearly every case.

Culminating a great effort to bring breed specific legislation to an end in Ohio, on February 21st, Governor John Kasich officially signed HB 14 into law. Dogs will now to be regarded by their behavior instead of their appearance.

Prevent factory farmers from hiding what goes on behind closed doors.

Food safety risks, animal abuse, and illegal working conditions are rampant on factory farms, and the corporate agriculture lobby is attempting to pass so-called "ag gag" laws -- laws which would make it illegal to photograph or videotape at agricultural facilities, or to possess or distribute such evidence.