Legal "Persons"? The New York Court of Appeals, Chimpanzees, and Habeas Corpus
On December 4, 2014, five judges of the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court, Third Judicial Department, delivered judgment on a rather unusual matter. In The Nonhuman Rights Project v Lavery, 518336 (NY App Div), the court had to consider whether a captive chimpanzee could be considered a legal "person" entitled to a habeas corpus proceeding. […]