Kristen A. Stilt

Kristen A. Stilt is Professor of Law and Faculty Director of the Brooks McCormick Jr. Animal Law & Policy Program and the Program on Law and Society in the Muslim World at Harvard Law School. She previously held appointments as Harry R. Horrow Professor in International Law at Northwestern Law School and Professor of History at Northwestern University. Her work bridges animal law, Islamic legal studies, and comparative constitutional law.

Education:

• JD, University of Texas School of Law
• PhD in History and Middle Eastern Studies, Harvard University

Stilt's research centers on animal law, particularly its intersection with religious law and constitutional frameworks. She explores how Islamic law and contemporary constitutional systems address animal welfare, including the 2014 Egyptian Constitution's animal protection clause and Ecuador's landmark 2022 recognition of animal rights within the Rights of Nature. Her scholarship also delves into historical Islamic legal practices in Mamluk Egypt, focusing on the muhtasib's role in regulating public behavior.

Her recent publications highlight synergies between animal rights and environmental law, such as in Naturalized Rights of Animals, Animalized Rights of Nature (2025), which proposes collaborative strategies to combat industrial animal agriculture. Earlier works like Islamic Law in Action (2011) and Constitutional Innovation and Animal Protection in Egypt (2018) examine legal doctrine and societal implementation in both historical and modern contexts.

Scientific Awards:

• Carnegie Scholar for constitutional Islam research
• Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship (2013)
• Fulbright and Fulbright-Hays awards

Stilt actively engages in legal advocacy, including filing amicus briefs for animal rights cases in Ecuador. She leads Harvard's Animal Law & Policy Program and co-founded initiatives like the Islamic Legal Studies Program, emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches to law and societal challenges.