Brian Cass

Brian Cass is the managing director of Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS), a company that provides animal testing services. Before moving to HLS, Cass was a director of Covance. He was awarded a CBE in 2002. 

At HLS
Huntingdon Life Sciences has been the target since 1999 of Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC), a campaign run by British, American and European animal-rights activists, who seek to close it down.

Cass sustained serious head injuries when he was attacked outside his home in the UK in February 2001 by three men armed with pickaxe handles and CS gas. Detective Chief Inspector Tom Hobbs of Cambridgeshire police told reporters: "It's only by sheer luck that we are not beginning a murder inquiry." A neighbor who tried to help Cass was sprayed with CS gas.

The attack was associated with the SHAC campaign, though activists there denied being involved. Dave Blenkinsop, who had also engaged in actions using the name of the Animal Liberation Front, was jailed for three years for the attack.

In 2007, Cass criticized the UK financial community for failing to work with HLS after they "took fright" at intimidation from animal rights activists. He was quoted as saying "We would dearly love to have a High Street bank account again... [but] we still can't get banking or insurance in the UK."