Faculty & Staff

The Center for Animal Law Studies is headed by Pamela Frasch, Executive Director and the first and only Assistant Dean of an animal law program in the nation. Together with Clinical Professor Kathy Hessler and Assistant Director Laura Handzel, they devote themselves to expanding course offerings, running the clinic, and engaging in research and scholarship to further the field of animal law.

 

Pamela D. Frasch, J.D.

Assistant Dean of the Animal Law Program &
Executive Director of the Center for Animal Law Studies

Link to Faculty Page (Includes link to curriculum vitae)

Executive Director Pamela Frasch joins Lewis & Clark Law School from the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), a national non-profit animal protection law organization that seeks to protect the lives and advance the interests of animals through the legal system. In 1996, Ms. Frasch created the ALDF Criminal Justice Program which has since assisted law enforcement and animal advocates in investigating and prosecuting thousands of animal abuse and neglect cases nationwide.

In addition to her duties with the Center, Ms. Frasch is co-author of the premier American legal casebook in the field, Animal Law, Cases and Materials now in its fourth edition (Carolina Academic Press, 2011) and used in most animal law courses being taught in the United States. She is also co-author, with Professor Kathy Hessler, Sarah Kutil and Sonia Waisman, of Animal Law in a Nutshell (Thomson West, 2010). Ms. Frasch has taught survey and advanced courses in animal law at Lewis & Clark Law School since 1998.

Ms. Frasch is a frequent speaker and guest lecturer on issues of animal law and is the principal author of Oregon’s first felony anti-cruelty law. She has authored or co-authored many articles and book chapters in the field, and has been recognized by the Humane Society of the United States and the Oregon Humane Society for her contributions.

 

Kathy Hessler, J.D., LL.M.

Clinical Professor & Animal Law Clinic Director

Link to Faculty Page (Includes link to curriculum vitae)

Professor Kathy Hessler comes to the Center from Case Western Reserve University School of Law, where she both taught and served as Associate Director of the Center for Interdisciplinary Study of Conflict and Dispute Resolution. She was also a founding director of the Summer Legal Academy, a program of the Center for Social Justice designed to support the interest of minority high school students in the law. She taught in the Milton A. Kramer Law Clinic Center, and also taught courses on animal law, mediation, and focused problem solving.

Prior to teaching at Case, Professor Hessler taught in clinical programs at Cornell Law School, the University of Dayton Law School, and the Capital University School of Law. She has been an advisor to the Animal Law Review since 1998.

Professor Hessler has published:

• Where Do We Draw the Line Between Harassment and Free Speech? An Analysis of Hunter Harassment Law, 3 Animal Law Journal 129 (1997). CITED in People v. Sanders, 696 N.E.2d 1144, 1150 (Ill. S.Ct., 1998).
• Early Efforts to Suppress Protests: Unwanted Abolitionist Speech, 7 Boston University Public Interest Law Journal 185 (1998).
• Bridge of Hope, Journey to Justice: An Essay, Volume 3, Issue 1 Seattle Journal for Social Justice 429 (Fall/Winter 2004).
• Mediating Animal Law Matters, 2 Journal of Animal Law and Ethics 21 (2007).
• Ohio Non-violent Civil Disobedience Protest Manual, 1996, updated 2002, 2003.

Professor Hessler is also co-author, with Executive Director Pamela Frasch, of the forthcoming Animal Law in a Nutshell (Thomson West, 2010).

Professor Hessler received her B.A. in Sociology from George Washington University, her J.D. from the Marshall-Wythe School of Law, College of William and Mary, and her LL.M. from the Georgetown University Law Center. Prior to focusing her career on becoming a law professor, Ms. Hessler practiced law with Northern Virginia Legal Services in their Fairfax Office.

 

Laura Handzel, J.D.

Assistant Director of the Center for Animal Law Studies

Laura Handzel joined the Center for Animal Law Studies as the first-ever Animal Law Program Assistant. Before joining the Center, Ms. Handzel freelanced at various law firms in Tucson, Arizona, while also focusing much of her time on grassroots animal rescue, humane education & animal protection advocacy work. Ms. Handzel earned her J.D. from the University of Wisconsin in Madison, where she also completed a Certificate of Special Training in Environmental Law & Policy Analysis. She is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of the University of Arizona and also studied at the University of Pau, France. As Assistant Director, she handles numerous elements of the Center’s premier program, including legal research and writing, finances, marketing, public relations, web design, program development, student advising, administering the National Animal Law Competitions and the Summer Intensive Animal Law Program, and the list goes on.  Laura grew up on a working farm in the Midwest and comes from a family of lawyers, fostering a passion for both environmental and animal law.  Within the field of animal law, Laura has special interests in farmed animals, wildlife, the link between domestic violence and animal cruelty, breed discrimination, social justice, as well as public health and policy issues.  Laura enjoys spending time outdoors, especially with friends and family, which include her four rescued companion animals.