Animal-related Legal Disputes: Litigation, Adr, and Court Appointments
| Publication year | 2013 |
| Pages | 43 |
Articles Animal Law
Animal-Related Legal Disputes: Litigation, ADR, and Court Appointments
By Gabriela N. Sandoval.
ANIMAL LAW ARTICLES ARE SPONSORED BY THE CBA ANIMAL LAW COMMITTEE.
Many individuals, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and corporations own, work with, sell, keep, or protect animals. This article provides a brief overview of typical obstacles encountered when such parties enter into litigation, along with possible alternative options for dispute resolution
Animal-related litigation poses interesting and complex challenges for disputing parties, legal practitioners, and judges. The practice of animal law is diverse and complex because many of the more traditional areas of law are implicated, requiring legal practitioners to demonstrate competency in a wide range of practice areas.
Civil disputes may include claims of negligence, injury, or death; custody or possession; fraud; or duty of care violations. Various matters may arise related to contract and sale agreements; bailment issues; consumer protection and deceptive trade practices; animal insurance coverage; landlord, tenant, and homeowners association issues; torts, such as trespass and conversion; animal control officer authority and practice; breed-specific legislation; and unconstitutional searches, seizures, or taking of property.
Litigants may be in conflict over alleged professional negligence or malpractice; neglect or cruelty allegations; implementation of statutory pet trusts; available damages for injury or harm to an animal; temporary injunctions or protective orders; the effect of state laws, including the Pet Animal Care Facilities Act and Colorado Department of Agriculture regulations; violations of animal-related federal laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act, Animal Welfare Act, or the Endangered Species Act; and dangerous dog allegations, including whether the dog will live or die, under what circumstances, and where the dog should be housed pending trial.
Animal protection laws are not consistently enforced due to a variety of circumstances. For example, when animals are injured or killed, it may be difficult to prove the required elements of standing to sue, or the party with standing may not have the resources or requisite interest to litigate.
In cases where standing is easily established, the available causes of action may be limited because animals are not recognized as legal persons, but are instead classified as personal property. Whenever a party litigating an animal dispute wins a case on the merits, the award is routinely a small fraction of the perceived actual harm suffered.
An adequate remedy may or may not exist based on the fact that damages available in animal-related disputes are ambiguous and/or inconsistently applied. Attorneys will analyze both sides of potentially relevant statutory and case law and explore secondary sources that may shed light on how the court may interpret the law and calculate an award, but the outcome is largely left to the judge's discretion. As a result, the "fundamental principle to be applied ... to restore the injured party, as nearly as possible, to the position he would have been in had it not been for the wrong of the other party"[1] seems to get lost.
A Review of Applicable Statutes and Case Law
Numerous civil and criminal laws recognize, in one form or another, that animals require unique treatment under the law. Every state in the nation has passed laws that recognize special treatment with regard to animals. Colorado has enacted many laws, and amended others, relating to animal issues, including:
• mistreatment or neglect of an animal[2]
• intentional abandonment of a dog or cat[3]
• general cruelty to animals[4]
• care of pet animals held in certain facilities[5]
• domestic violence[6]
• protective orders[7]
• seizure[8]
• mandatory reporting[9]
• dangerous dogs[10]
• animal fighting.[11]
Cities throughout Colorado have enacted their own ordinances related to animals, as well.[12]
Criminal laws aim to protect animals from neglect and cruelty, recognizing that animals are sentient beings and can and do suffer neglect and abuse. It is relevant to note that the animal cruelty laws of Colorado are listed in the Criminal Code within Offenses Against Public Peace, Order and Decency,[13] and not in the sections for Offenses Against the Person or Offenses Against Property. Referring to the section of the Criminal Code that prohibits animal cruelty, one court noted that the aim of the section "is not only to protect these animals, but to conserve public morals, both of which are undoubtedly proper subjects of legislation."[14]
Colorado has modeled some animal-related laws after other laws already in place to protect vulnerable members of society—namely children. Colorado's mandatory reporting laws require certain professionals to report suspected child abuse to proper government officials.[15] In 2007, Colorado created a mandatory reporting law for animals, modeled after the mandatory reporting law related to children, which requires veterinarians to report suspicion of animal cruelty to appropriate officials.[16]
The link between animal violence and human violence has been researched and explored and is better understood today than it has been in the past.[17] The complex dynamics of domestic violence and coercive control in relationships also has been further examined and realized. The recognition that these forms of violence are interrelated motivates increased protection of animals as a way of protecting human beings. In Colorado, criminal and civil protection orders now may apply to and protect animals, as well as humans, from potentially violent people.[18]
Despite the recognition that animals require and do enjoy unique treatment under the law, litigants routinely face an uphill battle if they want to sue regarding an animal dispute. In many instances, complex issues have not been properly analyzed; therefore, the court is unable to consider important interpretations of relevant law. As in cases that are not animal-related, the specific causes of action, claims, interpretations of relevant law, and arguments presented will influence which remedies, damages, or restitution apply to the facts presented. The main obstacle in an animal dispute is that animals are neither people nor truly "things," and the law traditionally has categorized violations against one or the other.
Many courts around the United States and the world[19] have noted in their opinions the importance and history of animals in society, and have used legislative history and intent to uphold action to protect animals or the people who provide their care, or for the sake of environmental protection. However, the remedies and damages in similar cases may not be adequate or consistently applied in all courts.
Disputes involving domestic animals are continuing. Damages available to plaintiffs in animal injury cases have bewildered attorneys around the country.[20] Because there are widely varying interpretations of the current law, it is not always clear how compelling one's argument may be, whether one's client should pursue trial, or what precedent exists with regard to a client's unique circumstances. Attorneys will continue to analyze potentially relevant case law and identify and draw on similarities or distinctions that will help their legal arguments.
In an effort to clarify how animal-related cases will be examined by the court, some states have added new language to their current statutes and have included details as to how damages should be calculated when animals are involved.[21] No such laws currently exist in Colorado.
Although states may continue to implement new laws that will govern damages or other aspects of animal-related disputes, parties currently can take advantage of alternatives to litigation. These alternatives likely will enable parties, attorneys, and judges to avoid many of the difficulties that emerge when animal-related issues are the focus of the case.
Alternative Dispute Resolution Options
In rendering advice, a lawyer may refer not only to law but to other considerations such as moral, economic, social, and political factors that may be relevant to the client's situation.[22] In a matter involving or expected to involve litigation, a lawyer should advise the client of alternative forms of dispute resolution that might reasonably be pursued to attempt to resolve the legal dispute or to reach the legal objective sought.[23]
With few exceptions, any court of record may refer a case to any ancillary form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR), including: arbitration, early neutral evaluation, med-arb, mini-trial, multi-door courthouse concepts, settlement conference, special master, summary jury trial, or any other form of ADR the court deems an effective method for resolving the dispute in question.[24] Animal dispute litigation is a developing area, and these established options offer possible solutions for the complex cases that may arise.
Mediation
Mediation is the most widely used method of ADR in civil cases. Although parties may opt for mediation on their own, court-ordered mediation is common. Mediation is recognized as an excellent opportunity for self-determined parties to work with a professional neutral.[25]
The mediator facilitates confidential discussion and mutual understanding between the parties, and fosters brainstorming in an effort to allow the parties to focus on their interests. The mediator motivates the parties to generate and evaluate new ideas for resolving their dispute. Mediation is an ideal alternative to litigation in that parties are encouraged to think outside...
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