Weil attorneys assisted nonprofit Oceana’s campaign to protect sharks and eliminate shark finning and shark fin trading in the United States. Finning is the practice of removing the fin of a shark and then discarding the maimed animal, often still alive, back to sea to a certain death. Weil attorneys located in London, New York, Washington, D.C., and Dallas researched U.S. and foreign laws of multiple jurisdictions, as well as international agreements banning shark finning that could trigger prohibitions under U.S. federal law. Weil attorneys also researched and processed data on the imports of shark fins into the United States to support Oceana in its efforts to pass the “Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act.” The work by Weil attorneys was entirely pro bono.

The Weil team included counsel Jennifer Brooks Crozier and associates Bessie Tuo, Natalie Kennedy, Ace Szmolyan and Courtney Luster, and was supervised by partner Heather Emmel, counsel Nathan Cunningham and special legal consultant Glenda Bleiberg. On this matter, the Weil team worked with Alicia Cate, Oceana Senior Counsel and former Weil International Arbitration & Trade associate.

Oceana is a nonprofit international organization focused solely on oceans, dedicated to achieving measurable change by conducting specific, science-based policy campaigns with fixed deadlines and articulated goals. Since its founding, Oceana has won more than 225 victories and protected more than 4.5 million square miles of ocean.