Legal Services
Currently in the UK, 49% of adults own a pet, with 24% of the UK adult population owning a dog. It is estimated that there’s a total of 8.9 million pet dogs in the UK, therefore it is no surprise that there are incidents occurring on a day-to-day basis with dogs.
Incidents can range from dog fights, dogs injuring people to animal welfare issues. Over the past 11 years I have been instructed as an expert witness by solicitors throughout the UK to assist the courts in relation to dog behaviour, breed identification and welfare.
Types of instructions
- Dangerous Dogs (Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 section 3, Dangerous Dogs (Amendment) Act 1997
- Prohibited Dogs Breed Conformation (Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 section 1, Dangerous Dogs (Amendment) Act 1997
- Dogs Act 1872 section 2
- Dog Behaviour (relevant to all)
- The Welfare of Dogs (Animal Welfare Act 2006)
- Operational Use and Training of Security Dogs (Guard Dogs Act 1975)
- The Law in Relation to Dogs
Since 2007, myself and my colleague and father, Guy Richardson, have been instructed by solicitors and clients nationwide to perform behavioural / animal welfare assessments and / or prohibited breed type conformation assessments for the courts of this country on a total of 656 dogs.
We have a thorough working knowledge of the law in relation to dogs and are happy to give pro-bono advice to solicitors or counsel acting on behalf of clients who have been charged with dog related offences. We have provided expert witness reports for both the defence and prosecution in criminal cases and provided expert reports in civil cases. We have given evidence many times at tribunals, Magistrates and Crown Court trials and Appeals at the Crown Court.
Since Guy’s retirement in 2015 I have solely dealt with all legal instructions.
Although I am based in Liverpool, I have received many instructions from solicitors nationwide, especially in the Merseyside, Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Cumbria, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, North Wales & South Wales, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Cleveland, Staffordshire and Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire & Greater London areas.