Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68Jennifer Friedman’s professional interest lies beyond groups of people who feel themselves somehow mar- ginalized in society. Instead, her concern lies with those who literally cannot speak, our four-legged and winged friends. “I’ve always been an animal- lover,” she explains. “In law school, I recognized Animal Law as an under- developed discipline, and set out to do something in that field.” Today, Jennifer operates an Animal Law practice on Port Perry’s Queen Street, in addition to offices located in Beaverton and Thornhill. But the road to this specialized legal practice was not a straight one. “I worked for a while in a corporate environment and quickly realized that wasn’t for me. In 2006, I was hired as General Counsel by the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (OSPCA), and that was fascinating and rewarding.” For a person with a strong affinity for animals, she says it also proved to be a challenging assignment. “Being counsel to the OSPCA gave me greater insight into what was happening with animals in a variety of contexts and that part of it was eye-opening.” Toughening laws and increasing enforcement in animal-related cases has improved somewhat over time, Jennifer says. News items – pit bull bans are especially explosive topics, and the recent killings of a lion by a trophy hunter and a gorilla at a zoo garnered considerable press and began to af- fect public opinion. “In 2009, the Pro- vincial Animal Welfare Statute took a narrow offenceprovisionon puppy and kitten mills to a broad animal cruelty offence,” she says. “The statu- tory amendments added more teeth to what had been a paper dragon. The hope was that those changes would assist with prosecutions. “Thetrophy-hunterincidentstirred considerable public debate about the morality of that killing. There has been a slow but noticeable change in public attitude over the past decade.” But a basic, and systemic, problem remains. “The law still regards ani- mals as property rather than as sentient beings, mean- ing that they have feelings and the ability to perceive. Categorization as property renders animals on the level of inanimate objects in the Courts. Who speaks for those who can’t speak for themselves? Canada’s Animal Lawyer JENNIFER FRIEDMAN DOES! Please turn to page 5 Jennifer shown with Claudia, her 12.5 year-old Old English Sheepdog (at her feet) and newly rescued from California this past September, Leo a 14 month old Sheepdog mix. FOCUS - DECEMBER 2016 3