4 October 2023
Laura Kiy, Tiffany Mitchell, Lotta Teale, Paula Sparks – UK Centre for Animal Law

For World Animal Day, we are celebrating recent positive law reforms that have the potential to improve the lives of animals across the globe.

We encourage all legislatures and courts around the world to be proactive in protecting the interests of animals.

United Kingdom recognises animal sentience.

In 2022 the UK enacted the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022. This legislation recognises that animals are sentient and impacts of policy on sentient animals is now considered across Ministerial departments in Government. Congratulations to the UK for committing to consider the welfare of animals as sentient beings when introducing government policies. We look forward to hearing progress from the newly established Animal Sentience Committee about the next steps. Read this legislation here. 

Spain amends the legal status of animals to recognise sentience.

In Spain the government amended its Civil and Criminal Codes to recognise that animals are sentient. The new law provides that:

‘Animals are living beings endowed with sensibility. The legal regime of goods and things shall only be applicable to them insofar as it is compatible with their nature and with the provisions for their protection.

The owner, possessor or holder of any other right over an animal must exercise his or her rights over them and his or her duties of care with respect for their quality as a living being endowed with sentience, ensuring their well-being according to the characteristics of each species and respecting the limitations established in this and the other regulations in force.’

Brazilian court rules in favour of live export ban.

On 25 April 2023, Judge Djalma Gomes of the 25th Federal Civil Court of São Paulo delivered a judgment banning the exportation of live animals out of Brazil’s ports. The reasons for the judgment were three-fold: Animals have rights and are sentient beings, live animals should not be transported to countries where slaughter practices afford a lesser degree of protection to each animal and welfare of animals during the exportation process does not meet legislative requirements.

Whilst the judgment will be reviewed before it becomes final, it is a crucial step forward for animals and one that will be monitored closely.

Proposition “Prop” 12: Animal welfare trumps commerce in California.

Prop 12 is a Californian law which prohibits the sale of pork from pigs who are “confined in a cruel manner”. It ensures that sows have at least 24 square feet of floor space, rather than the 14 square feet that gestation crates provide. Two organisations (the National Pork Producers Council and the American Farm Bureau Federation) sought to challenge this law, arguing that it is unconstitutional because it places a burden on interstate commerce (California imports nearly all pork consumed in the state). On 11 May 2023, the case was dismissed by the Supreme Court, ensuring that this essential protection remains in place. You can read the judgment here.

Canada passes legislation to phase out chemical toxicity tests on animals.

In June 2023, Canada passed Bill S-5, now the Strengthening Environmental Protection for a Healthier Canada Act, which includes a provision to phase out chemical toxicity tests on animals. This new law mandates the government to use animal cruelty-free methods for testing toxicity, to draft a plan on how they will promote and use animal-free toxicity testing methods by 2025, and requires them to report annually on progress of said cruelty-free methods stated under their plan.

Legislature in California enshrines legal rights for elephants.

In North America, the Nonhuman Rights Project recently announced (27.09.2023) that: ‘Ojai City Council [in California] became the first legislative body in the country to pass legislation that defines and protects the legal right of a nonhuman animal–specifically, elephants’ right to liberty…..the ordinance expressly recognizes that elephants possess the right to liberty, prohibits anyone from preventing elephants from exercising their right to liberty, and details how the law will be enforced and the penalty for violating it…..The enactment of this ordinance is a huge milestone in the nonhuman animal rights movement, and we cannot overstate its importance.’

Earlier this year, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child has recognised the impact that witnessing violence inflicted on animals can have on children and conversely the positive benefit of interacting with the animal world. In their General Comment 26, Section G, art 19, paragraph 35 states that ‘Children must be protected from all forms of physical and psychological violence and from exposure to violence, such as domestic violence or violence inflicted on animals.’

Read A-LAW’s press release here.