The main component of the program addresses the needs of the student body directly through course offerings, speakers, conferences, and scholarship focused on animal law, as well as providing support for The George Washington Law School student chapter of the Animal Legal Defense Fund.
The current courses include:
6424 Animal Law Seminar
This 2-credit class is a survey of the treatment of animals in state, federal, and international law. Topics include the historical status of animals; federal statutes such as the Animal Welfare Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the Marine Mammal Protection Act; international conventions, free trade, and comparative animal protection laws; state laws concerning animal cruelty, hunting, animal fighting, and performing animals; free speech, religion, and other constitutional issues; litigation in state and federal courts; citizen initiatives and referenda; and the movement to obtain legal recognition of the rights of animals. The course is taught by internationally recognized attorneys, including Nancy Perry, HSUS vice president for government affairs.
6426 Public Law Seminar: Animal Rights and the Law
This 2-credit seminar taught by Professor Joan Schaffner in the spring semester is the co-requisite seminar for students enrolled in the Animal Law Lawyering Project but is opened to all other interested students as well. The seminar explores the theoretical, legal, and practical implications of granting animals “rights.” This seminar will explore the debates between animal welfare and animal rights, animals as property or persons, and analyze and compare laws in the U.S. and in other selected countries as it relates to animals and their rights.
6431 Wildlife and Ecosystems Law:
This 2 or 3 credit course is taught by Professor Ethan Eddy.
In-depth study of the complex body of laws that protect or regulate wildlife, including laws that protect ecosystems and the habitats in which wild animals live. The course addresses more than two dozen wildlife-specific federal laws and their accompanying regulations, similarly intricate state law schemes, federal and state civil and criminal enforcement, constitutional and tribal issues that arise in wildlife cases, and a vivid common law history that stretches across several centuries.
6656 Independent Legal Writing
Preparation of a research paper under the supervision of a member of the faculty who will determine, prior to registration, whether the work required for the topic justifies 1 or 2 credit hours. Professor Joan Schaffner supervises papers on topics relating to animal law.