This factsheet was completed by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)  . Please direct any questions or comments to PETA directly at 757-622-7382 or info@peta.org.

Model Injunction Against Animal Acts

If an animal act is coming to town and you haven’t been able to persuade the show’s sponsors to cancel it, you can still get the show stopped by convincing a judge to swear out an injunction, which can be used to restrain a traveling animal show from appearing at a specific location under specified circumstances. While you would normally need to file a suit for injunctive relief only after other methods—including attempts to persuade the act’s sponsors/managers to cancel—have proved unsuccessful, it is important to plan ahead, so there will be sufficient time for your lawyer to prepare an injunction if the need arises.
 
State anticruelty laws should be scrutinized for potential application to any type of animal act, such as wrestling bear acts, high-diving mule acts, and traveling zoos, since all of these involve probable injury to and suffering by the animals. Although criminal cruelty laws are normally enforced after the fact, an individual or group may employ injunctive relief to stop an act which would be in violation of the law. Some other bases for injunctive relief may be state or local sanitation standards, liquor licensing laws, restrictions on the possession or use of wildlife, and public health and safety laws. The use of animals in entertainment has already been restricted or banned in several U.S. localities—such as South Carolina and Orange County and Pasadena, California—as well as in cities around the world, like New Delhi, Belfast, and Rio de Janeiro. The council of the Chester-le-Street district in the U.K. banned events in which animals perform as “a relic of a bygone era.”(1)

Types of Injunctions
Ordinarily, there are three types of injunctions employed. The first, a temporary restraining order, is used to halt an act that would cause injury, loss, or damage to the complainant and prevents this act from occurring until the complainant is able to have a say in court. This order is used as a last-minute tool to stop an animal act from appearing for a short time (generally no more than 10 days). To obtain a temporary restraining order, it must be clear from the specific facts shown by affidavit or verified complaint that immediate and irreparable injury, loss, or damage will result without this order. The order may be granted with or without the presence of opposing parties and generally involves no in-court presentation. Unless both parties agree to an extension, a temporary restraining order must then be replaced by the second type of injunction, a preliminary injunction.
 
A preliminary injunction involves a more in-depth proceeding that includes both parties, along with an in-court argument and presentation. The court weighs the respective harm to each party and the community at large, and if the court determines that the greater harm would occur without the granting of the injunction and that the complaining party has a strong likelihood of success on the merits of the case, the court will generally issue a preliminary injunction. The preliminary injunction remains in place until the case is tried on its merits. Should the complainant win on the merits, the court will convert the preliminary injunction into a permanent injunction.
 
A permanent injunction would bar the animal act from appearing in the court’s jurisdiction. A court generally has the power to combine the application for a preliminary injunction with a hearing on the merits of the case and issue an order making the temporary order permanent.

Steps for Injunctive Relief

Step #1: Well in advance of the event, seek an attorney with good litigation skills and preferably a working knowledge of the substantive issue. Some points to keep in mind when discussing the possibility of seeking injunctive relief with an attorney are these:
• Fees (The attorney should be able to provide you with an estimate in advance of what it will cost if the lawsuit goes to trial. Ask for a flat fee or fee cap and whether a reduction in that fee can be offered.)
• Experience (Has the attorney worked on other cruelty-to-animals cases in the past and would he or she be willing to work with other attorneys or organizations that might be able to assist with the case?)
• Time Constraints (Is the attorney able to devote the necessary time to follow the case through to completion based on his or her current case load?)

It is imperative that the attorney thoroughly research the issue of the plaintiff’s “standing” before he or she proceeds with researching any other aspect of the case.
Without standing, your case cannot succeed. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and seek a second opinion. In addition to payment of your attorney’s fees, keep in mind that you may also need money for court filing fees and for posting bond when the court grants a temporary restraining order. Your attorney can help you to determine the likely amount of these expenses.

Step #2: Work with a local humane society or other group customarily charged with law enforcement that might be willing to sign on as a coplaintiff. The involvement of this organization may satisfy the requirements for standing.

Step #3: File the complaint. The attorney must review all applicable laws and address the question of standing as it applies to each law. Headings to look under are: anticruelty statutes; wildlife laws, including endangered species and restrictions on wild or exotic animals; public health and safety laws, including restriction of live animals in food- or liquor-serving establishments, sanitation laws, and rabies laws; vicious or dangerous animal laws and liability and insurance laws; and transportation laws including intrastate and interstate travel and carrier requirements. Ask your attorney to explore nonstatutory areas of regulation that might provide a basis for relief including private and public nuisance cases. You should read all the sections yourself and ask questions.

Step #4: Locate expert witnesses. Veterinarians, animal behaviorists, others with specialized knowledge (in the case of diving mules, an engineer would be helpful to calculate the rate of impact that the animal is subjected to), and health department officials who are prepared and knowledgeable will be an asset to the case. National groups such as the Association of Veterinarians for Animal Rights (P.O. Box 208, Davis, CA 95617-0208; 530-759-8106) and the Animal Legal Defense Fund (127 Fourth St., Petaluma, CA 94952-3005; 707-769-7771) may be able to help you identify expert witnesses and provide information on similar cases.
 
Thorough legal research, keeping in close contact with your attorney, working with your expert witnesses, and seeking out additional resources will help increase your likelihood of a successful outcome for the lawsuit. Creativity, timeliness, and preparedness will pave the way for future efforts that will relieve the suffering of animals used in entertainment.

Model Injunction
Temporary restraining orders usually include three basic components that your attorney must deliver to the court:

1. Complaint. (This is a brief description of who the plaintiff is and why he or she is filing for a temporary restraining order.)
2. Motion to grant temporary restraining order.
3. Oral argument or brief. (This will answer the question “Why should a judge grant a request to stop an animal act based on the information in the complaint?”)
 
While there is no single formula for a successful injunction, these papers will give you some idea of what you will need to include in filings.

Permanent Injunction
If you have been successful in obtaining a temporary restraining order, a trial date will be set to allow the court to hear evidence and arguments for and against a preliminary and/or permanent injunction. During the trial, expert witnesses will give testimony along with the attorneys’ presentations in an effort to convince the judge why the temporary restraining order should or should not be extended.
 
It is extremely important to familiarize expert witnesses with the facts before they walk into the courtroom. If your witnesses have not observed the act in person, show them a videotape or photographs. PETA may have these available. Share other experts’ statements with them, too. A meeting among the expert witnesses, plaintiffs, and attorney should take place well in advance of the court date. Answer any questions that they may have and tell them exactly what you hope to achieve.

Getting Help From the Media
If you are successful in obtaining a temporary restraining order, let your local newspapers and television stations know about it. You will gather support and let public officials know that their constituents are serious about stopping the abuses in traveling animal shows.
 
Always be prepared to protest in case the injunction is denied. Contact PETA for additional help and information.

References
    1) “Circuses Face New Ban,” The Journal (U.K.), 27 Nov. 2000.