Warranty for Defects in Domestic Animals under Polish Law
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71389/gjal.177189Keywords:
warranty, domestic animals, dereification, animal defectsAbstract
The paper examines the applicability of Polish civil law provisions on warranty for defects to the sale of domestic animals, in light of the principle of dereification introduced by the Animal Protection Act. The Act established that animals, as sentient beings capable of suffering, are not things, yet it allows for applying the legal provisions concerning things to animals accordingly. This creates interpretative challenges, particularly in contractual relations involving sales of domestic animals. The main emphasis in the paper is placed on the scope and applicability of the buyer’s rights. The paper argues that applying the buyer’s rights to domestic animals might contradict both the dereification principle and the prohibition of cruelty to animals. The author concludes that applying the warranty provisions accordingly requires careful reinterpretation in each case to balance the legal interests of buyers and sellers with the interests of the animal as a sentient being, manifested primarily in freedom from suffering, both physical and mental.
