Professor Robin Craig and a team of pro bono attorneys at Fried Frank have filed an amicus brief in Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association v. Ross, the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia that is challenging former President Barack Obama’s designation of the Northeast Canyons & Seamounts Marine National Monument 130 miles off the Atlantic coast in 2016.
The plaintiffs, represented by the Pacific Legal Foundation, argue that presidents cannot establish national monuments in the ocean under the Antiquities Act and that presidents cannot regulate fishing there. They also argue that the monument is too big.
Craig drafted an amicus brief, which is also signed by 11 other law professors across the country who have expertise in ocean and coastal law. The brief covers domestic ocean and coastal law issues as they relate to the Antiquities Act, especially regarding the federal government’s “control” over the seabed and the seabed’s status as “land,” both of which are elements of Antiquities Act jurisdiction.
Craig said she is hopeful the brief will alert the judge to some of the larger issues in the case at stake.