Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: The legal recognition of animals in European Union (EU) legislation remains inconsistent, particularly regarding invertebrates. While vertebrates enjoy robust protections under EU law, insects and other invertebrates are systematically excluded from legal definitions of “animals”. This note focuses on Directive 2010/63/EU—the key EU legal instrument regulating the use of animals in scientific procedures—and highlights its exclusion of insects despite growing scientific evidence of insect sentience. Using a comparative analysis of national legal frameworks, ethical reasoning, and scientific findings, the note argues that the exclusion of insects from legal protection is both scientifically outdated and ethically inconsistent. Policy recommendations are provided to harmonize EU animal law and align it with contemporary ethical and biological understanding.
Source: The Global Journal of Animal Law
DOI: 10.71389/gjal.160789
Author: Angelos Tsikas
Institution: Democritus University of Thrace
Language: English
Topic: Animal Law and Welfare
Subfield: Law
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4410387348