"'The ag-gag law is an attack on traditional democratic processes,' Espey said in a statement Monday. 'In its brief, the state does not even attempt to justify this use of the law, yet it has rebuffed plaintiffs' offer of settlement and insisted on filing additional...
Read More"Workers who raise health concerns with their supervisors are further protected by the Occupational Safety and Health Act’s anti-retaliation provisions, said Amal Bouhabib, senior staff attorney with the worker advocacy group FarmSTAND."...
Read More"The Michigan Immigrant Rights Center is represented by John C. Philo of the Maurice & Jane Sugar Law Center for Economic & Social Justice, and David S. Muraskin of FarmSTAND."...
Read More"The case was litigated by attorneys from the nonprofit Public Justice, which has since spun off its agriculture-related work into a group called FarmStand. It was backed by animal rights groups as well as free-speech and media organizations."...
Read MoreLate Friday, the state of North Carolina agreed to pay a public interest coalition that successfully struck down North Carolina’s “Ag-Gag” law $884,987 in attorneys’ fees, as a result of the state’s efforts to defend the law for years. The plaintiff groups successfully sued to...
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These industrial-scale operations come at an extreme cost to animal welfare and public health. Close confinement of animals can increase disease transmission. More contact with other animals, longer contact, poor ventilation, and lack of sunlight all mean more and better chances for disease to spread....
Read MoreKelsey Eberly, who represents Colorado Legal Services, said in a statement that the judge's decision is a "victory for human decency, and for the health and well-being of farmworkers in the state." "It is also a rebuke to corporate agribusiness attempts to elevate an employer's private...
Read MoreLate Friday, a Colorado judge rejected a legal challenge to a state law that ensures that farmworkers can access essential services like doctors, teachers, clergy members, community aid workers, and attorneys. Judge Martin F. Egelhoff's ruling dismissed the Colorado Livestock Association’s suit that sought to strike...
Read More"The revised language recognizes various ways farmworkers can be vulnerable to exploitation and abuse, said Nathan Leys, a staff attorney at FarmSTAND. 'The broader problem is the isolation of these workers,' he said. 'You need to tackle all of the ways that being isolated affects...
Read More"As someone who has spent much of my professional career representing advocates and workers fighting back against corporate agriculture giants, one of the most egregious arguments I’ve seen is that property rights supersede the rights of workers – a tactic that’s become increasingly popular in...
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