The World Assembly

The World Assembly,

Recognising the need for a formal resolution on the procedures to protect the mentally disabled,
Understanding that there are multiple levels of of Mental Disability
Therefore Defining,for the purposes of this act, a Mentally Disabled person to be a sapient individual, above the age of majority, whose sapience has been reduced to the point where any two or more of the following are significantly reduced:

1. The ability to understand their rights

2. Their ability to defend their rights to the same extent as the average citizen in their nation

3. Their ability to exercise their rights

4. Their ability to make informed decisions regarding their health and safety

Hereby Mandates that in necessary cases, including but not limited to; legal matters, court matters, and medical consent, a limited power of attorney be transferred to a Responsible Adult.
Defines a Responsible Adult as one of the following

1. A preferred Responsible Adult, nominated by the person before they become disabled, will be the first person requested to become the Responsible Adult, but only if they can prove that they have no conflict of interest

2. A member of the Disabled Person's family, who can legally establish that they have no conflict of interests

3. In lieu of a suitable candidate, a representative, independent of the national government, must be selected, who must also pass a test of conflict of interest.

Mandates that the said Responsible Adult be monitored on a regular basis to ensure that no conflict of interest develops
Restricts the power of Attorney given to the Responsible Adult to the least possible in the circumstances
Urges the states to use this legislation as a matter of last resort, and to consider all alternatives before transferring a persons authority to another.
Urges the states using this legislation to work towards a position whereby a Disabled Person's authority is returned to them at the earliest possible juncture
Mandates the creation of a commission to monitor states for abuse of this legislation

URGING the WA to recognize that animals kept as property by people must be provided with protections as a moral responsibility;

REALIZING the importance of animals as food, clothing and medical resources that are imported and exported internationally and would thus require an international effort to prevent cruelty;

UNDERSTANDING that populations of animals sometimes require the intervention of people to prevent population growth or harm that is detrimental to the animal, environment and people, and allowing for such actions if all reasonable actions are taken to prevent unnecessary pain and suffering.

LIMITS animals in this resolution to beings that possess the scientifically demonstrated ability to feel and experience pain. Animals unable to feel pain as a result of their physiology are exempt.

LIMITS restrictions on interactions between people and animals in this resolution to include only all forms of domesticity, including farming and animal testing industries. Wild animals are exempt from this resolution as they are not a legal responsibility of owners.

DEFINES unnecessary as able to be reasonably avoided; While some industry, such as the meat industry, or fur industry, require that an animal be killed in order to create a product, which will necessitate brief pain, it is considered unavoidable. Similarly, prolonging the death of an animal because it is more cost effective is avoidable, so long as an alternative is economically feasible for that nation.

DEFINES pain and suffering as the unpleasant sensory experience associated with actual tissue damage and lasting unpleasant sensory experience as a result of prior tissue damage. Tissue damage inflicted under the supervision of a qualified veterinarian and with the use of anaesthetics to reduce or eliminate pain is reasonable.

DEFINES owners as any person who has purchased an animal or its descendants and/or has provided food or shelter or medical care to an animal on that person’s property for more than 31 days.

PROVIDES animals with the right to safety, reasonable quality of life and freedom from torture through holding owners legally responsible by:

1. PROHIBITING the infliction of unnecessary pain and suffering on any animal by any person either directly or remotely.

2. ENCOURAGING that domestic animals kept outside of an individual’s living space be provided with an environment that as closely resembles its natural habitat as is possible; one example would be “free range.”

3. REQUIRING that individuals or a group that possess legal rights under its nation’s law to an animal provide reasonable protection from harm by other animals and persons.

4. FORBIDDING forms of entertainment that require or involve the infliction of pain or suffering on animals,

5. ESTABLISHES the Protection of Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) that will meet annually at the WAHQ or another suitably neutral site to create and edit a list of feeling species protected under this legislation and determines whether an action is necessary or reasonable if national governments are unable to reach a decision.

The World Assembly:

CONVINCED that providing a system for resolving civil disputes is one of the primary purposes of government;

APPLAUDING the varied and admirable systems of civil justice that exist in every member nation;

AWARE that all civil justice systems have an attendant cost that is paid for by taxes, filing charges, and other court fees;

CONCERNED that court costs can be very expensive and that some individuals, because of their limited resources or means, may be unable to afford filing or court fees;

RESOLVED that an individual's socioeconomic background should not determine their access to justice, and that an individual should not be deprived of access to civil courts simply because they are unable to afford court costs;

Hereby,

1. DEFINES "court costs" for the purposes of this act, as "the costs and fees charged by a court (or other civil justice system) directly to a litigant for services rendered by the court." Examples of court costs include, but are not limited to: filing fees, service fees, court reporter charges, court transcripts, copying costs, and other similar expenses charged by the court.

2. ENCOURAGES member nations to fund their civil justice systems in a manner that completely avoids passing court costs directly onto litigants;

3. ENCOURAGES member nations to permit a successful litigant to recover the court costs they incur from the losing party;

4. MANDATES that if a member nation requires the payment of court costs, prior to the assessing those costs a litigant is entitled to request a cost wavier and/or deferment. Any individual whose request demonstrates that paying court costs would present a severe financial hardship, given their particular economic situation, shall be permitted to proceed with their case regardless of whether they have paid court costs.