Cockfight. Commentary on the Judgement 502/2015, of 23rd of December, of the Provincial Court of Tarragona

Abstract

We have a legal tradition about animals where we have considered them as things, regulated by a property point of view. In our country, we have recently started to change this idea and regard them as special protection goods, which derives from the idea that they are not just a thing, but conscious beings with feelings. For this reason, we have adopted regulations in criminal and administrative matters to give animals a legal protection from possible abuses. In this commentary, the author analyzes the origin and evolution of animal abuse crimes, and discusses the Judgment 502/2015 of the provincial Court of Tarragona, on cockfight as a kind of animal abuse.