October 12, 2022 — The Maine Lobstermen’s Association said Tuesday it has hired former U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement to bring the association’s appeal of the new National Marine Fisheries Service rules to protect the endangered North Atlantic right whale.
The association is challenging what it calls the “scientifically-flawed federal whale plan that will cripple Maine’s lobster industry.” Clement, who served as U.S. solicitor general during the President George W. Bush administration from 2004-2008, “is widely recognized as a leading Supreme Court advocate, focusing on appellate matters, constitutional litigation, and strategic counseling,” the MLA said in a prepared statement
“When we said we refuse to let a single judge’s decision be the last word and that MLA is preparing to go all the way to the Supreme Court, we weren’t kidding,” said MLA president Kristan Porter, a commercial fisherman from Cutler, Maine. “We are incredibly grateful that Paul Clement, arguably the most qualified attorney in the nation on these matters, has chosen to stand with us.