Legal Action Against Montreal's 375th Urban Rodeo

MONTREAL, QUEBEC--(Marketwired - May 24, 2017) -

Editors Note: There is a photo associated with this press release.

A formal request for an injunction with a view to cancelling the "urban rodeo" planned as part of the celebrations for Montreal's 375th anniversary has been lodged with the Superior Court of Quebec on Tuesday, May 23, 2017 by Université de Montréal Law professor Alain Roy.

According to Professor Roy, the rodeo contravenes the provisions of Quebec's new Animal Welfare and Safety Act unanimously adopted in December 2015 by the Quebec National Assembly: "The Act defines animals henceforth as 'feeling beings with biological needs'. In light of the new legislation, there is no longer any justification for hosting a rodeo at which (by the organizers own admission) a team of veterinarians needs to be standing by, ready to intervene at any time, because of the potential for injury to which the animals are being exposed," stated Professor Roy, supported by a group of about twenty students in the Faculty of Law who have been working across recent weeks toward the preparation of this legal action.

Professor Roy is represented on a pro bono basis by attorney Marie-Claude St-Amant of the firm of Melançon, Marceau, Grenier et Sciortino.

The Quebec Animal Welfare and Safety Act

Under the Animal Welfare and Safety Act, the welfare or safety of an animal is deemed compromised if its owner or custodian subjects it to abuse or mistreatment that may affect its health. The Act also prohibits anyone from causing distress to an animal whether by act or omission.

In 2015, Pierre Paradis, Minister of Agriculture, who sponsored Bill 54, stated that he wished the new provisions would "[advance the province of Quebec] from one of the most lenient jurisdictions in North America in terms of animal welfare to one of the strictest. By tabling the bill […], I had thought we would be moving the province of Quebec forward by 20 years, but the update covers more like 200 years. I would like to thank the members of the National Assembly for their significant contribution to this legislation. Parliamentarians have been the voice of the animals."

Call for Support

Professor Roy is also inviting all others who object to Montreal^'s hosting the urban rodeo to add their names to the 22,000 who have already expressed their opposition through the Montreal SPCA Website at: http://www.notorodeo.com/

Source: Alain Roy

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