Animal Law: Welfare Interests and Rights
- Jan 20
- 1 min read
Updated: Feb 20
By David Favre • 1983 (2019, 3rd edition)
The law school casebook for animal law. Favre (who has taught animal law at Michigan State for over forty years) assembles cases, statutes, and essay materials that expose how the legal system actually treats animals: as property, with limited and inconsistent protections. The book covers anti-cruelty laws, the Federal Animal Welfare Act, constitutional issues, wildlife regulation, and the emerging attempts to secure legal rights for animals.
Why it matters
This is the logical sequel to the Nutshell. Favre doesn't just summarise the law; he teaches you to think like a lawyer about it. The casebook format means you're reading actual court decisions, tracing judicial reasoning, and seeing where the arguments succeed or fail. For anyone serious about understanding or eventually practicing animal law, this is the deep end.
Worth knowing
Favre developed the concept of "Living Property," a legal category that would grant animals certain protections while acknowledging their current status within property law. It's a pragmatic middle path between the current system (animals as things) and the aspirational goal (animals as persons). He also created animallaw.info, the largest free animal law database in the world.
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