Animal Law Podcast #54: The Case of the Psychologically Unprotected Primates

Explicit content warning

11/27/19 • 46 min

On this episode of the Animal Law Podcast, I speak with Professor Katherine Meyer, Director of the Animal Law and Policy Clinic at Harvard Law School, along with two of her students, Boanne Wassink and Brett Richey. The three of them speak with me about the very first case filed by the Animal Law and Policy Clinic, New England Anti-Vivisection Society v Perdue, which involves a petition for rulemaking filed with the USDA way back in 2014 trying to get the agency to rewrite rules interpreting the requirements in the Animal Welfare Act requiring psychological enrichment for primates. We discuss the lack of enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act, the importance of considering the psychological well-being of primates, and how this case is affected by standards put forth by the National Institutes of Health for chimpanzees used in research. They also talk about the work that the Animal Law and Policy Clinic is doing and what it hopes to accomplish, including, such as in cases like this one, improved enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act.

Katherine Meyer was a founding partner of the public interest law firm, Meyer Glitzenstein & Eubanks, which the Washingtonian Magazine hailed as “the most effective public interest law firm in Washington, D.C.” She has extensive federal and state court litigation experience, and is known for finding innovative ways to advance her clients’ interests. Professor Meyer has extensive experience litigating cases under the Endangered Species Act, National Environmental Policy Act, Animal Welfare Act, Freedom of Information Act, and other environmental and open government laws, and has also successfully litigated many cases to protect the wild horses in the West.

Brett Richey, Harvard Law School ‘21, is a native of Pasadena, California. Brett graduated magma cum laude from Vanderbilt University in 2018, where she majored in Public Policy Studies and minored in Corporate Strategy. During Brett’s senior year at Vanderbilt, she wrote an undergraduate thesis analyzing the relationship between early childhood court involvement and future juvenile delinquency. Since coming to Harvard, Brett has become very interested in animal law, and particularly hopes to advocate for the wellbeing of captive animals kept in research labs and exhibitions. After graduating from law school, Brett plans to be a trial attorney in Washington, DC, and someday hopes to run for elected office. Outside of class, Brett enjoys supporting the Boston Red Sox, visiting local craft breweries, traveling to new countries, and winning escape rooms with her friends.

Boanne Wassink, now a third-year student at Harvard Law School, graduated from Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa, where she majored in mathematics and physics. After planning for many years to be a research mathematician and earning her Master’s in Mathematics at the University of Iowa, Boanne made a career change to enroll in law school. During her 1L year at Harvard, Boanne discovered the field of animal law and quickly became involved through courses; research assistantships; the Animal Law Society, of which she is Vice President; and now the Animal Law & Policy Clinic. Along the way she decided to devote her career to helping animals through the legal system. After graduating this May, Boanne will clerk for two years at the Staff Clerk’s Office of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. After that, she hopes to return to her native Iowa and join the fight against factory farming. When she’s not at school, Boanne spends her time relaxing with her husband, playing with their two young children, and telling their daughter bedtime stories about lawyers helping animals.

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The graphics for the OHH podcasts are created by the wonderful Laurie Johnston of Two Trick Pony. Don’t forget to also listen to the award-winning, weekly si...

Previous Episode

Animal Law Podcast #53: A Meaty Constitutional Discussion

On this episode of the Animal Law Podcast, I speak with Professor Sherry Colb of Cornell Law School along with one of her students, Jareb Gleckel. We’ll be speaking about a recent article they have co-written, “Labeling Alternative Meat: Constitutional Choices That Can Dictate the Future of Food,” __ Animal L. R. __ (forthcoming, 2020), that is about the constitutionality of legislation that seeks to limit, and in some cases criminalize, the types of labels that can be used for plant-based foods. We start by discussing a new decision on a motion for a preliminary injunction in Turtle Island Foods v Richardson, otherwise known as the Missouri Tofurky case (which I discussed with Amanda Howell on Episode 43) and move on to discuss the constitutional issues that are at issue in that and similar cases, some of the wide-ranging implications of these cases, and some potentially powerful alternative arguments. It’s a fascinating and lengthy discussion that you’re sure to find informative regarding a crucial issue for the future of food, and the future of animals.

Sherry F. Colb is the C.S. Wong Professor of Law at Cornell University. She was valedictorian of Columbia
College and received her law degree magna cum laude from Harvard. She then went on to clerk for Judge Wilfred Feinberg (on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit) and then Justice Harry A. Blackmun (on the U.S. Supreme Court). In addition to teaching courses in constitutional criminal procedure, evidence, and animal rights, she has published articles in a variety of law reviews, including Stanford, Columbia, N.Y.U., and G.W., and written two books about animal rights, Beating Hearts: Abortion and Animal Rights (co-authored with Michael C. Dorf) and Mind If I Order the Cheeseburger? And Other Questions People Ask Vegans. She composes a bi-weekly column on Justia’s Verdict as well as regular posts on the blog, Dorf on Law.

Jareb Gleckel is a third-year law student at Cornell and lives in Ithaca with his dog, Gatsby. Before starting law school, he co-founded and ran Hamptons Chess, which became known for its local outreach in Suffolk County, New York. Jareb also writes literary fiction, and Trident Media Group will represent his first two novels. After graduating, he will clerk for Judge Richard Wesley (on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit) and Judge Paul Oetken (in the Southern District of New York).

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Next Episode

Animal Law Podcast #55: A Case of Roadside Misery

On this episode of the Animal Law Podcast, I speak with Jessica Blome and Amanda Howell about the second chapter in the legal effort to close down Cricket Hollow Zoo, a sad roadside “attraction” where animals have been languishing in terrible conditions for years. I last spoke to Jessica on Episode 10 about some Endangered Species Act litigation that managed to free the animals covered by that law, but hundreds of animal remained, left to suffer merely because their species was not at risk. This time Jessica, along with the Animal Legal Defense Fund’s Amanda Howell, went back for the rest, suing on behalf of some deeply concerned citizens under Iowa Nuisance Law and basing their claim that this horrific facility was a public nuisance because it was in violation of the Iowa Anti-Cruelty statute. This is a fascinating case, with a (mostly) satisfying ending. But it also highlights some of the extraordinary gaps in current law “protecting” animals and the extraordinary lengths that must be gone to in order to get them out of obviously abusive situations.

Jessica Blome is a senior associate at Greenfire Law where she primarily practices in the areas of environmental, animal, open government, and land use law. She represents clients in citizen suit enforcement, climate change, and strategic impact litigation. Her practice includes litigating and advising under the Clean Water Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, RCRA, CERCLA, NEPA, CEQA, Administrative Procedure Act, Animal Welfare Act, Endangered Species Act, FOIA, California Public Records Act, and Brown Act. Before Greenfire Law, Jessica worked as an Assistant Attorney General in the Missouri Attorney General’s Agriculture & Environment Division, Senior Staff Attorney for the Animal Legal Defense Fund, and Deputy Director of the San Francisco Ethics Commission. She earned her law degree from the University of Iowa and has a B.A. in Organizational Communication, with Minors in Journalism and Ethics, from the University of Northern Iowa. Jessica is passionate about public lands access, wilderness protection, and outdoor recreation. She spends her weekends in the wild spaces in and around the Bay Area.

As a staff attorney for the Animal Legal Defense Fund Amanda Howell uses her background in strategic impact litigation to help us win big for animals. Prior to joining ALDF, Amanda’s career was focused on improving the food system and curbing the harmful practices of multinational corporations. She is dedicated to using her skills to combat iniquity and believes that changing how we view and treat animals will simultaneously improve life for all sentient beings and positively impact individual health, public health, and our environment. Amanda graduated from Northwestern University with a triple major in Political Science, International Studies, and Spanish. She received her law degree from Boston University, where she was the managing editor for the American Journal of Law and Medicine.

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