Summary
In 2020, Chief Justice Athar Minallah of the Islamabad High Court in Pakistan ruled that animals have legal rights in a case regarding the cruel treatment of zoo animals, especially an Asian elephant named Kaavan who the judge said endured three decades of “unnecessary pain and suffering.” In his judgment, the judge found that “after surveying the jurisprudence developed in various jurisdictions it has become obvious that there is consensus that an ‘animal’ is not merely a ‘thing’ or ‘property.’” The ruling is still in effect.
Suggested Citation:
Kauffman, Craig, Catherine Haas, Alex Putzer, Shrishtee Bajpai, Kelsey Leonard, Elizabeth Macpherson, Pamela Martin, Alessandro Pelizzon & Linda Sheehan. Eco Jurisprudence Monitor. V2. 2025. Distributed by the Eco Jurisprudence Monitor.https://ecojurisprudence.org/initiatives/islamabad-wildlife-management-board-v-metropolitan-corporation-islamabad/.
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