American court asked to give chimpanzee 'legal person' status

Wednesday, December 04, 2013

A US animal rights group is calling on a New York court to recognise a chimpanzee as a legal person, in what is believed to be a legal first.

The Nonhuman Rights Project wants a chimp named Tommy to be granted "legal personhood" and thus entitled to the "fundamental right of bodily liberty".

The group is planning to file the same lawsuit on behalf of three other chimps across New York this week.

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