CALS Welcomes Megan Senatori as Director of Strategic Initiatives

The Center for Animal Law Studies (CALS) at Lewis & Clark Law School welcomes Megan Senatori as the new Director of Strategic Initiatives.

“CALS is thrilled to have Megan join our growing team. Megan brings with her a robust and unique combination of skills and talents that make her a tremendous fit for this position. We are fortunate to have such a respected and innovative leader embrace CALS’ mission to educate the next generation of animal law attorneys and advance animal protection through the law” stated CALS Executive Director, Pamela Hart.

Megan is a seasoned civil litigator, nonprofit leader, animal law professor, and scholar on animal protection issues. She taught the first-ever animal law course at the University of Wisconsin Law School in 2003, and the first-ever animal law course at Marquette University Law School in 2005. She taught the animal law course at both Wisconsin law schools (in alternate years) through 2013. She routinely presents to veterinarians, humane officers and law enforcement regarding animal protection issues, including teaching a portion of the annual Wisconsin Humane Officer Certification Program for the State of Wisconsin for more than a decade. She has written several published law journal articles on animal law, including: The Second Revolution: The Diverging Paths Of Animal Activism and Environmental Law (published in the Wisconsin Environmental Law Journal and re-published in Environmental Ethics and the Law) and The Future Of Animal Law: Moving Beyond Preaching To The Choir (published in the Journal of Legal Education, co-authored with CALS Dean of the Animal Law Program, Pamela Frasch). She also served as co-author of an amicus brief before the United States Supreme Court on behalf of a group of 43 law professors from across the country to argue in United States v. Stevens that preventing animal cruelty is a compelling governmental interest to be respected by the Court. She co-authored the brief with Dean Pamela Frasch and Professor Kathy Hessler. 

Megan has a particular passion, interest and extensive experience working on the link between domestic violence and animal cruelty. She is Co-Founder and President of Sheltering Animals of Abuse Victims (SAAV) a nonprofit organization that she co-founded in law school in 2001 (saavprogram.org). She co-founded SAAV with CALS Executive Director, Pamela Hart. SAAV is dedicated to ending the cycle of abuse. SAAV plays a unique role in this fight by recognizing animals as vital family members and arranging for their safe harbor when a domestic abuse victim seeks refuge from an abuser. Megan has been featured for her work in O Magazine and a variety of other publications. She was recently a featured speaker on the link in Vancouver at a joint meeting of the American Bar Association and the Canadian Bar Association.

“The depth of expertise and experience in animal law at CALS is truly unparalleled. I am so excited to join this amazing team and, together, advance animal law education and animal protection,” stated Megan about her new position.