March 25, 2014 — A federal judge on Tuesday upheld California's ban on possession or sale of shark fins, rejecting claims that the law discriminates against the Chinese community – exactly where shark fin soup is a conventional delicacy – or interferes with federal management of ocean fishing.
The law, passed in 2011, took complete effect in July, when promoting and serving shark fin soup became illegal. It was challenged by Bay Area organizations of Chinese American firms and by shark fin suppliers, who argued that the legislation targeted the Chinese neighborhood and exceeded the state's authority to regulate fishing.
The suit briefly gained assistance from the Obama administration, which filed arguments last year saying that the state law was at odds with federal fishing laws. Those laws prohibit shark "finning," the removal of fins from live sharks, but do not prohibit possessing or promoting shark fins. The administration said the California law hindered a industrial market that federal regulations were intended to preserve.
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