Legal Problems

There is a wide range of legal difficulties in which veterinary surgeons, veterinary nurses and veterinary students may find themselves but only those that are most pertinent to members of the veterinary profession are covered on this site.

You can link to those legal areas on the left and some sources of general legal advice are listed below.

Legal helplines can be available from other organisations that you may belong to, such as the Federation of Small Business (www.fsb.org.uk) or as add-ons to motor or household insurance policies.

Vet Helpline on 07659 811 118 (local call rates apply, 24hr rapid response answer phone) has friendly people with experience of the veterinary profession available to talk to you in complete confidence if you are feeling distressed about your legal problems.  

• BVA Legal Advice Line (members only)
  
  BVA provides a free legal advice line for its members.  The advice line is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and is manned by a team of legal advisors, mainly lawyers, who have a range of expertise covering all aspects of the law. 
  
  Members are able to fax documents or agreements where they require advice, but advisers will not write on a member’s behalf.  All calls are treated as confidential and are recorded for future reference.
  
  The resource is for BVA members only – the phone number is available from the members section of the BVA website. A valid membership number is required in order to access the BVA legal advice line.
  
  
• BVNA Legal Helpline
  
  All BVNA members have access to a free legal helpline, manned by legal professionals who will answer questions in relation to any subject, not just employment. If you are a BVNA member and you need to ring the legal help line, telephone the BVNA office on 01279 408644 or email bvna@bvna.org.uk, and they will put you in touch with the right person. You will need to have your BVNA membership number ready.
  
  
• Veterinary Association for Arbitration and Jurisprudence (VAAJ)
  
  Aims to act as a bridge between the legal and veterinary professions.
  
  Membership of VAAJ is open to all persons interested in veterinary/legal matters. Members are able to deal with all aspects of litigation, arbitration, mediation and advocacy in those subjects that affect animals and their owners, both directly and indirectly, including disease, management, employment and welfare.
  
  VAAJ meetings involve
  
  a) talks on the laws that apply to Veterinary Surgeons either as Veterinary Surgeons or as employers and those which may involve us as expert witnesses,
  
  and
  
  b) training Veterinary Surgeons to write and present incident reports, how to give evidence in court cases and in the role of Veterinary Surgeons as Expert Witnesses.
  Website: www.veterinaryexpertwitnesses.co.uk
  
  
• American Veterinary Medical Law Association (AVMLA)
  
  The American Veterinary Medical Law Association (AVMLA) is a national association of attorneys, veterinarians, and other individuals and organizations with an interest in veterinary medical law and how it pertains to the veterinary profession and allied fields.
  
  
• Citizens’ Advice Bureau On-line Advice
  
  Practical, up-to-date information on a wide range of topics, including benefits and housing, employment rights and discrimination, debt and tax issues, links to a directory of Citizens Advice Bureaux, a wide selection of fact sheets to print off and details of other reliable on-line sources of information.
  Website: www.citizensadvice.org.uk
  
  
• CLS Direct
  
  Free, confidential and independent legal advice if you are eligible for legal aid. The website has a wide range of links to reliable on-line sources of legal information.  
  Tel: 0845 345 4 345
  Website: www.clsdirect.org.uk 
  
  
• Free Lawyer
  
  There is a large database of law which is written by solicitors/barristers and provided on this website for free. There is no free follow-up service - if your particular query is not covered, or you need further explanation, or you wish to speak to a solicitor - these services will incur a charge.
  Website: http://www.freelawyer.co.uk