Animal Law

Randy has always been a friend of and an advocate for animals. He has worked as a volunteer on wildlife conservation projects around the world, including orangutan rehabilitation in Borneo, Indonesia, elephant conservation in Kenya, and black rhino conservation in Zimbabwe. He has represented and served on the boards of directors of several animal welfare organizations. He represents animal rescue groups, wildlife sanctuaries, animal rights activists, and others who help animals. Randy represented the dog owners in the Texas Supreme Court case Strickland v. Medlen where he argued that pet owners should be allowed to recover the sentimental value of companion animals that are wrongfully killed rather than just their market value. He is a founding member and past chair of the Animal Law Section of the State Bar of Texas and a member of the Animal Law Section of the State Bar of New Mexico. He is a recipient of the International Society for Animal Rights’ SEEDS Award and the State Bar of Texas Animal Law Section’s Donald D. Feare Animal Advocacy Award. Randy frequently gives lectures on animal law for attorneys, prosecutors, business organizations, law enforcement officers and animal control officers. He has been involved in drafting bills which have been passed into law by the Texas legislature, and has testified several times in the legislature on bills affecting animals. He has extensive experience with the following types of animal law cases:

Violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Fair Housing Act, and Air Carrier Access Act involving disabled people and their assistance animals
Representing rescue groups, animal welfare organizations, and wildlife sanctuaries
Adoption and foster contracts for rescue groups
Defending dog bite cases
Homeowners’ disputes with HOA’s regarding animals
Defending animal rights activists
Ownership disputes and recovering stolen animals
Defending animal advocates and owners in defamation lawsuits
Claims against pet shops, breeders, groomers, kennels, animal transporters, and puppy mills
Animal cruelty
Personal injuries caused by dog bites
Municipal animal ordinances
Defending dangerous dog citations

Animal Welfare Organizations:

Resources:

Fighting for animals in the Texas Legislature: Texas Humane Legislation Network
Humane education: Texas Humane Network
Texas animal laws:
– Treatment and Disposition of Animals
– Regulation of Animals
– Cruelty to animals (Texas Penal Code)
– Ag-Gag law (illegally entering, stealing from, or damaging an animal operation)
– Texas Rabies Control Act (Chapter 26 of Health & Safety Code)
City animal ordinances: Municipal Codes of Texas cities
Complaints against veterinarians: Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners
Places open to the public and service animals: https://www.ada.gov/regs2010/service_animal_qa.html
Housing and assistance animals: https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/PA/documents/HUDAsstAnimalNC1-28-2020.pdf
Airplanes and service animals: https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=ae47679a5dc0b0cdd685abc7e3437dbb&mc=true&node=pt14.4.382&rgn=div5#se14.4.382_173
National animal welfare litigation: Animal Legal Defense Fund

Be the person your dog thinks you are.