Advertise on podcast: The Animal Law Podcast

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★★★★★

4.7

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112 reviews

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Join animal law professor and longtime activist Mariann Sullivan as she explores groundbreaking legal cases shaping the future of animal protection. Each episode features in-depth discussions with leading attorneys, scholars, and advocates about critical developments in animal law—focusing on significant court decisions and their enforcement. Whether you’re a legal professional, animal advocate, or concerned citizen, discover how case law is evolving to recognize and protect animals. From landmark litigation to emerging legal theories, the Animal Law Podcast makes complex legal issues accessible while examining their impact on animals and society.

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Check latest episodes from The Animal Law Podcast podcast

A Case of Significant Evil: Animal Law, Activism, and Constitutional Rights

2026/01/30

In this compelling episode, Mariann Sullivan interviews Wayne Hsiung and attorney Steffen Seitz about Wayne’s conviction following animal rescues at factory farms in California. The case hinges on several groundbreaking legal arguments, including the judge’s refusal to allow a necessity defense for rescuing suffering animals, constitutional concerns about the treatment of veganism as a belief system, and First Amendment implications for…

The Case of the Lobster, a “Living, Sentient Creature”

2025/12/26

In a bold legal challenge that could redefine animal protection law, PETA is taking on the Maine Lobster Festival for steaming 16,000 lobsters alive on public parkland. The case hinges on Maine’s unique animal cruelty statute that protects “every living sentient creature” – a definition that evolves with scientific understanding. PETA’s Director of Litigation, Asher Smith, explains their creative approach using…

Animals and the Constitution with Michael Dorf

2025/11/28

In this intellectually stimulating episode of the Animal Law Podcast, Mariann Sullivan speaks with constitutional law expert Michael Dorf about his innovative course “Animals and the Constitution.” Dorf shares how fundamental legal principles intersect with animal protection, revealing both the limitations and opportunities within our constitutional framework for advancing animal rights. This episode explores: Constitutional standing for animals: How courts determine…

The Case of the Overlooked Law: Challenging Animal Confinement Through Forgotten Legislation

2025/10/31

Attorneys Will Lowrey (Animal Partisan) and Jessica Blome (Greenfire Law) join Mariann to discuss their battle to use California’s century-old animal protection laws to help dairy calves confined in tiny hutches. Despite having clear evidence that a dairy farm was violating Penal Code Section 597t by denying calves adequate exercise, they encountered a frustrating maze of procedural obstacles that prevented them…

The Case of Banning the Truth in a Public Park | First Amendment, Animal Agriculture & Free Speech

2025/09/26

In this thought-provoking episode of the Animal Law Podcast, we dive into a First Amendment case that cuts straight to the heart of animal advocacy: can the government prevent activists from showing the public what actually happens to animals in industrial agriculture? Mariann speaks with Sara Berinhout of FIRE (Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression) and John Greil of the University…

Animal Law Breakthrough: Court Recognizes Dogs as Family Members with Christopher Berry

2025/08/29

This episode of the Animal Law Podcast features Christopher Berry, Executive Director of the Nonhuman Rights Project, discussing a groundbreaking court case that recognizes companion animals as family members in certain legal contexts. Mariann and Christopher explore how this New York decision challenges decades of precedent that treated beloved pets as mere property rather than family, potentially opening new doors for…

Challenging “Alligator Alcatraz”: The Legal Fight to Protect the Everglades with Elise Bennett

2025/07/25

In this compelling episode, Mariann Sullivan speaks with Elise Bennett, Senior Attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, about the lawsuit challenging the controversial immigration detention facility in Florida’s Everglades. Bennett details how this hastily constructed center in Big Cypress National Preserve threatens endangered species, water quality, and the integrity of a crucial ecosystem that has received billions in restoration funding…

Redefining Democracy: How Constitutional Law Could Embrace All Sentient Life

2025/06/27

In a groundbreaking episode of The Animal Law Podcast, we explored radical new concepts that could fundamentally transform how constitutional law treats animals. Host Mariann Sullivan welcomed Cambridge University’s Raffael Fasel and Queen Mary University’s John Adenitire to discuss their book “Animals and the Constitution: Towards Sentience-Based Constitutionalism” – a work that challenges centuries of legal tradition by proposing constitutional frameworks…

Is Ventilation Shutdown Legal? Private Citizens Fighting Factory Farm Cruelty

2025/05/23

In this episode of the Animal Law Podcast, Mariann Sullivan welcomes back Will Lowrey, legal counsel for Animal Partisan, alongside David Rosengard, managing attorney for the Animal Legal Defense Fund‘s Criminal Justice Program. They dive into an obscure but potentially game-changing legal tool: laws in certain states that allow private citizens to obtain search warrants when they have evidence of animal…

Can an S.P.C.A. Prevent Cruelty to Cows? with Alene Anello

2025/04/30

Alene Anello of Legal Impact for Chickens joins us once again, this time to talk, not about chickens, but about cows. Of course, the laws affecting farmed animals are often the same regardless of species and Legal Impact for Chickens thinks it would be great to see some of California’s rather good laws protecting farmed animals actually enforced. For that reason,…

The Case of the Cows, the Gas, and the Money with Kelsey Eberly and Skye Walker

2025/03/26

FarmSTAND attorneys Kelsey Eberly and Skye Walker join us on this episode to discuss an absolutely infuriating case, Blumm v Northwest Natural Gas Company. They explain how an increasing number of dairy farms are more in the business of selling the methane being produced by their manure piles, or, as they call them, “lagoons,” than selling milk. Now, in Oregon, natural…

The Case of the Frankenchicken with Edie Bowles

2025/02/26

Edie Bowles, the Managing Director of UK law firm Advocates for Animals, joins us on this episode to help us understand what appears to be a groundbreaking decision in animal welfare law that involves one of the most widespread and egregious practices in industrial animal agriculture, the breeding of factory-farmed chickens raised for meat in ways that cause unbelievable suffering. At…

The Case of the Thirsty Elk: Saving Point Reyes’ Tule Elk with Chris Green and Rebecca Garverman

2025/01/29

Chris Green and Rebecca Garverman join us this week to talk about a case that managed to catch the attention not only of the public at large but of a number of lawyers and, after a great deal of hard work, resulted in a historic victory. You may have heard about the plight of the Tule elk at Point Reyes National…

The Case of the Cultivated Chicken with Paul Sherman

2024/12/25

Paul Sherman, senior attorney with the public interest law firm The Institute for Justice, joins us this week to discuss the legal battle over cultivated meat in Florida. Paul is leading the landmark lawsuit brought by UPSIDE Foods, challenging Florida’s controversial statute that criminalizes (criminalizes!) the production and sale of USDA-approved cultivated meat products in the state. This pivotal case examines…

Animal Law Podcast #114: The Case of the Not-So-Clean Water Act

2024/11/27

Emily Miller of Food and Water Watch joins us to talk about Food and Water Watch v EPA, which involves the Clean Water Act and why, when it comes to one particular industry (guess which one!), it is so ineffective in guarding our water from being polluted with outright filth. Whether it comes to the failure to require factory farms to…

Podcast reviews

Read The Animal Law Podcast podcast reviews

4.7 out of 5

112 reviews

★★★★★

ValRose233 2023/10/28

A+ Podcast

Interesting, timely, informative; this is a great listen for anyone interested in animal welfare or animal welfare law. Highly recommend!

★★★★★

KCHNC 2023/07/03

Excellent for anyone interested in animal rights

I am not a lawyer, but I am scholar who studies animal rights/welfare discourse. This podcast is very informative and engaging, and Mariann has a casu...

★★★★★

Marrajess 2023/06/07

Fascinating!

Unfortunately I’m not very knowledgeable about the law but I really enjoy this podcast. I don’t always understand everything and sometimes it goes ove...

★★★★★

Deeeev 2023/01/15

Fantastic podcast

Im into animal rights, but don’t know much yet. So im learning a lot here!

★★★★★

midas133 2022/12/29

Excellent, informative podcast

Very happy to have discovered this podcast!

★★★★★

EllieRobbins 2022/03/18

Great podcast

This podcast is really informative! I’m a second year law student and I haven’t gotten the chance to take any animal law classes but I am learning so ...

★★★★★

ken swensen 2021/10/29

an expert guide

Great podcast for animal advocates that want to understand the power and shortcomings of our legal system. Mariann is an expert guide. She's smart, in...

★★★★★

caroline voldstad 2020/11/02

Necessary and enjoyable

This podcast offers such an engaging and accessible way to dive into so many of the different branches of animal law and animal welfare issues- highly...

★★★★★

Juanita O'Brien 2020/08/31

Engaging and informative

I’ve learned a great deal about animals and the law from this podcast and appreciate the host’s no-nonsense speaking style and biting humor.

★★★☆☆

Cathyvil 2020/10/07

The Guests are Interesting

I enjoy the guests but this gets three stars as i find the host sanctimonious, self-righteous, and narcissistic to a fault that can detract from the i...

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