Animal rights advocates are seeking numerous changes in the laws affecting animals; much of the activity to date has been at the state level.  As is the case with many areas of law, there is significant variation in activity from state to state. As a result, the laws in New York are likely to be very different from similar laws in California .  In animal law, this phenomenon is the same, but tracking the activities across the various states reveals a pattern that reflects the current course of animal law.

In this section of the website, we track state legislation and state court decisions on various animal law topics. These include efforts to restrict animal dissection in the classroom, legislative proposals and court decisions affecting animal tort law, legislative efforts to update pet trust statutes, and amendments to state animal cruelty statutes.  This section of the site will also summarize state ballot initiatives involving animals.  Please see the State menu at right for more details.