The Legal State of Non-human Animals: From Paddocks to Pleadings: Farm Animals and the Law
Voiceless, in conjuction with the University of New South Wales’ Faculty of Law, instigated Australia’s first animal law lecture series in 2007. This series provided an ideal introduction for lawyers, barristers, in-house counsel, legal academics and law students to the diverse range of legal issues which affect farm animals, ranging from property law and food labelling regulations to defamation and animal welfare laws. Topics included: The legal status of farm animals in Australia, New Zealand and the United States; Animal derived food product labelling in Australia – Lifting the veil of secrecy; Defamation in the animal protection movement; Save Babe – 2006/07 Legal issues and public awareness initiatives; Issues with Enforcement of Farm Animal Protection Laws; and Issues with enforcement in United States – farm animals and beyond.
International guest was Professor Steven Wise, described by USA Today as “America’s best-known animal lawyer”.
The highlight of the series was the Voiceless/UNSW inaugural public lecture, which was held at UNSW’s Kensington campus. It included a panel discussion by Professor David Weisbrot AM, President of the Australian Law Reform Commission, Geoffrey Bloom, lecturer of animal law at UNSW, and Katrina Sharman, Voiceless’s Corporate Counsel.