PETA Sues Zoo Med

[Cheesenugget]

And hopefully this doesn't lead to the creation of such.
Requirements are so different for various species, it could be a mess.

Sure they can try. We get them a lot in the county and circuit cases in my work, and even when Plaintiff cited a statute or case law, they have yet to win on that.. even if it did, it does not mean every case filed will also get a win, especially you will have different judges who won't agree and may not have to follow what their fellow judge say (Unless it's the Supreme Court of the state or higher court that can appeal it). I tell people this all the time: any idiot can file a lawsuit, but that does not mean they get anything out of it. On the contrary, the filing party can be liable for the other side attorney fees and costs and court fees if they lose. The judge may dismiss the case too, so that's not going to anywhere. Most court system allow anyone to sue over anything because filing fees isn't cheap and the judges could also use more money. That's why I'm so interested in this lawsuit. I need to go into the docket and see if I can find their complaint.

[AbsoluteApril]

Oh I don't think they can win, I don't even think that is their goal here (although I'm sure they want to). I see it as a starting point for them to try to introduce a 'need' for more legislation in the reptile industry as a whole to further their end goals of ending all pet ownership.

[bcr229]

I tell people this all the time: any idiot can file a lawsuit, but that does not mean they get anything out of it. On the contrary, the filing party can be liable for the other side attorney fees and costs and court fees if they lose. The judge may dismiss the case too, so that's not going to anywhere. Most court system allow anyone to sue over anything because filing fees isn't cheap and the judges could also use more money. That's why I'm so interested in this lawsuit. I need to go into the docket and see if I can find their complaint.

There is no "loser pays" in federal court. Zoo Med can certainly request that PETA pay their attorney fees if they prevail but it's not a given.

Also Zoo Med's insurer is probably paying for the attorney, not Zoo Med, and they'll push for some kind of mediated settlement to keep the legal fees to a minimum, because insurers aren't in the business of writing checks.

[Cheesenugget]

There is no "loser pays" in federal court. Zoo Med can certainly request that PETA pay their attorney fees if they prevail but it's not a given.

Also Zoo Med's insurer is probably paying for the attorney, not Zoo Med, and they'll push for some kind of mediated settlement to keep the legal fees to a minimum, because insurers aren't in the business of writing checks.

They will either be send to mediation, told to be set a date for one, or dismiss the case if that's all they got after the court rules on the DEC action first (if that is what that court date is set for). They can also mediate any time before court to work this out which isn't uncommon, but if I was Zoo Med (the insurer rep them would hire lawyers to rep Zoo Med, or/and Zoo Med can have their own in-house team observe the case), give them a lowball nuisance number to get them to go away. Of course they can ask for fees - you don't automatically get it or the judge may deny it, just like the judges do in some state level cases. It's correct in most cases, the 'winner' don't collect, unless they see it is worth doing so, or both sides agree to walk away bearing their own fees and costs, etc... In this case, it looks like PETA may have deep wallet, so who knows. It depends on resources, staffing, time and costs on both sides to make whatever move they think it's best while the lawyers collect their fees. It will be an interesting case indeed.

Fyi, while most insurers don't want to payout or spend more than they have to, there are many who would litigate tooth and nail, i.e. State Farm.

[Cheesenugget]

I took some screenshots at the Zoo Med website looking for 20 gallon tanks (as an example) since that is what they are quoting in their complaint, I'm assuming, based on the news article. The search comes up with an empty regular 20 gallon tank in different colors and a snake kit. If there are more that are not for turtle or lizard specific, please let me know. The other 20 gallon tanks or kits are for turtles, bearded dragons and leopard gecko. Personally I'm no fan of these tanks for turtles and bearded dragons, and obviously some species of snakes. I am not a Zoo Med fan, I think there are many areas for improvement, but as a consumer, one should also do their homework before making any purchases.

Anyways, these are the descriptions I could find on the tanks. I think it's pretty vague in some parts. For example, there are some species of kingsnakes that may or may not fit in the tank. I have used it for my adult grey banded king who would burrow, climb and had plenty of space to stretch out. But I would never put my Cali king in that thing.

Also I think I found where PETA quoted about the length description in the education section of the website. Please note how PETA or the news article did not quote the rest of the paragraph, including their recommendation for a large sized tank for adult ball pythons and corns.

Im not in agreement with everything Zoo Med says, so don't flame me lol.

See for yourself.

Sent from my moto g(7) using Tapatalk

[bcr229]

https://www.dccourts.gov/superior-court/cases-online
Search for case number 2020 CA 004123 B

The Judge granted Zoo Med's motion to dismiss on 01/11/2021, PETA lost, case closed.

[Bogertophis]

https://www.dccourts.gov/superior-court/cases-online
Search for case number 2020 CA 004123 B

The Judge granted Zoo Med's motion to dismiss on 01/11/2021, PETA lost, case closed.

[BeansTheDerp]

PETA has said before that they don't support snakes as pets, suddenly they're giving advice? honestly their "advice" is just pointing out more of a fact that they're horrible at pet keeping..... thank goodness they lost!