Suzana Gartner | |
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Nationality | Canadian |
Alma mater | University of Toronto Osgoode Hall Law School |
Occupation(s) | Lawyer, Mediator, Animal Law Advocate |
Suzana Gartner is an author, retired lawyer, mediator, and animal advocate. Her legal practice, Gartner & Associates Animal Law, was the first law firm in Canada to focus exclusively on animal law and the mediation of animal law disputes. Gartner & Associates Animal Law ceased operations in December of 2020.
Gartner serves as the Chair of the Ontario Bar Association’s Animal Law Executive Committee. [1] She is a past member of the Ontario Bar Association’s Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Executive Committee. [2] She sits on the Board of Advisors for Animal Justice Canada. [3] Gartner is also a member of the Jackman Humanities Institute (JHI) working group, ‘Animals in the law and Humanities’ at the University of Toronto. [4]
Gartner is a member in good standing with The Law Society of Upper Canada.
Gartner’s journey into animal welfare began as a shelter volunteer. In 2010, a chance encounter led her to an abandoned dog at a Toronto municipal shelter. She regularly walked him, but as days passed, and no one came to claim or adopt him, she realized the implications. She convinced her mother to meet him and that day, he was adopted and found a home.
Saving this one life was her impetus to commit to change the legal system, and work to put an end to the killing of adoptable companion animals.
In 2013, Gartner completed her Master of Laws degree in ADR at Osgoode Hall Law School. Her research combined ADR methods with the field of animal law, and she coined the term, ACAP, Acceptable Companion Animal Philosophy, [5] a balanced approach that recognizes the inherent value and sentience of companion animals, and proposes consensus building as a strategy to amend animal legislation towards ending the plight of homeless companion animals.
In 2023, Archway Publishing released Gartner's first book, A Voice for Animals: The Social Movement That Provides Dignity and Compassion for Animals.
From 2009-2010, Gartner worked for the Ontario Ministry of Labour, in the Dispute Resolution Services Branch, as a mediator intern.
In 2014, Gartner launched Gartner & Associates Animal Law, [6] a law firm that represented clients with animal-related disputes, focused on protecting animals’ interests, and advancing the field of animal law.
The Importance of Building Enduring Human-Animal Bonds in Psychology Today [7]
The “Why” Behind “Adopt Don’t Shop” in Female First [8]
Animal People and Human People - The Conflicts that Arise from Their Interaction With Suzana Gartner on the Mediation Station Show podcast [9]
Ontario woman feels abandoned by pet insurer she's paid $30K after coverage on elderly dog drops 30% in CBC News [10]
Dog owner raises concerns about breeder after puppy diagnosed with genetic condition in CBC News [11]
Some jurisdictions have tightened trapping rules in Owen Sound The Sun Times News [12]
Pet Custody Issues on Animal News Magazine [13]
Court rules Ontario animal protection law enforcement regime unconstitutional in Canadian Lawyer [14]
Adjudicator calls for specialized court to tackle pet ownership and custody issues in The Lawyer's Daily [15]
Pets and Animal Law on The Dating and Relationship Show [16]
Pet Mediation on Zoomer Radio Family On Air [13]
The Family Pet: Property or Person in The Lawyer's Daily [17]
When there's a divorce, who gets the family pet? on CBC Here and Now [18]
What happens to the dog when a couple breaks up? in The Toronto Star [19] and Tasha Kheiriddin's show on Talk Radio AM640 [20]
Pet Insurance Growing But Read the Fine Print in The Lawyers Weekly [21]
Judge limits Toronto lawyer to two pets in the Law Times News. [22]
‘Animal law: Reducing Euthanasia in City Shelters’ [23] to the Canadian Bar Association. [24]
‘Improving Canadian Federal Anti-Cruelty Legislation’ [25] at the Institute of the Ontario Bar Association's session ‘Current Trends and Important Developments in Animal law’. [26] [27]
‘Pet Custody Disputes: Companion Animals as Sentient Beings,’ in the Newsletter of the Animal Law section of the Ontario Bar Association (November, 2015). [28]
An animal shelter or pound is a place where stray, lost, abandoned or surrendered animals – mostly dogs and cats – are housed. The word "pound" has its origins in the animal pounds of agricultural communities, where stray livestock would be penned or impounded until they were claimed by their owners.
Osgoode Hall Law School, commonly shortened to Osgoode, is the law school of York University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Trap–neuter–return (TNR), also known as trap–neuter–release, is a controversial method that attempts to manage populations of feral cats. The process involves live-trapping the cats, having them neutered, ear-tipped for identification, and, if possible, vaccinated, then releasing them back into the outdoors. If the location is deemed unsafe or otherwise inappropriate, the cats may be relocated to other appropriate areas. Ideally, friendly adults and kittens young enough to be easily socialized are retained and placed for adoption. Feral cats cannot be socialized, shun most human interaction and do not fare well in confinement, so they are not retained. Cats suffering from severe medical problems such as terminal, contagious, or untreatable illnesses or injuries are often euthanized.
CFIQ is a commercial radio station licensed to Richmond Hill, Ontario, and serving Greater Toronto, Southern Ontario and Western New York with a talk format known as "640 Toronto". Owned by Corus Entertainment, CFIQ's studios are located at the Corus Quay Building in Toronto; despite the station's city of license being a suburban community north of the city, the transmitter resides in the Niagara Region town of Lincoln, 60 kilometres of Toronto.
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A no-kill shelter is an animal shelter that does not kill healthy or treatable animals based on time limits or capacity, reserving euthanasia for terminally ill animals, animals suffering poor quality of life, or those considered dangerous to public safety. A no-kill shelter uses many strategies to promote shelter animals; to expanding its resources using volunteers, housing and medical protocols; and to work actively to lower the number of homeless animals entering the shelter system. Up to ten percent of animals could be killed in a no-kill shelter and still be considered a no-kill shelter.
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The Arbitration Roundtable of Toronto is made up of several litigators, academics, arbitrators, and mediators from the Greater Toronto Area. The group promotes arbitration as an alternative method of conflict resolution over litigation, especially in commercial suits. Members include commercial litigators from Toronto law firms including some of the Seven Sisters of Bay Street. Each member has experience and interest in promoting commercial Arbitration. The group dedicates its time to encouraging this form of Dispute resolution through seminars, papers, and talks.
Harvey Brownstone is a retired judge of the Ontario Court of Justice and the first openly gay judge in Canada. He is also a bestselling author and host of a television and internet talk show.
Black dog syndrome or big black dog syndrome is a phenomenon in which black dogs are passed over for adoption in favor of lighter-colored animals. Animal shelters often use the term BBC, or big black canine, to describe the type of larger dark-colored mixed-breed thought by some to be passed over by potential adopters. Black cats are similarly reported to be subject to the same phenomenon.
The National Animal Interest Alliance (NAIA) is a non-profit organization in the United States dedicated to promoting animal welfare and animal husbandry practices, strengthening the human-animal bond, and safeguarding the rights of responsible animal owners and professionals through research, public education and public policy. The NAIA mission is "to promote the welfare of animals."
Alanna Devine is a Canadian lawyer who practices animal law in Quebec and Ontario. She completed her undergraduate degree in criminology at the University of Toronto and obtained degrees in civil and common law at McGill University Faculty of Law in Montreal, before clerking for the Honorable Justice Louise Charron at the Supreme Court of Canada. While a student she founded the McGill Student Animal Legal Defense Fund, a chapter of the Animal Legal Defense Fund. She has been a member of the Law Society of Ontario since 2007.
James V. Maloney is a Canadian lawyer and politician, who was elected to the House of Commons of Canada in the 2015 election. He represents the electoral district of Etobicoke—Lakeshore as a member of the Liberal Party caucus. In September of 2023 he was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General.
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The ADR Institute of Canada (ADRIC), is a non-profit organization that offers alternative dispute resolution services to its members and the public across the country. It is one of the leading authorities on ADR in Canada, offering highly respected professional designations for both mediation and arbitration, with plans for a mediation and arbitration (Med-Arb) designation in the works. ADRIC has also created an established set of ADR rules and codes, outlining the principles by which its affiliated ADR practitioners commit themselves to following. Beyond promoting ADR and networking and training individuals in ADR practices, ADRIC presides as the national body of the seven regional affiliate bodies of the ADR Institutes in Canada: