SmartBrief
Confirm favorite deletion?
Animal Law Keyed to Wagman
Committee for Humane Legislation v. Richardson
Citation:
540 F.2d 1141 (1976)Facts
In the eastern tropical Pacific, yellowfin tuna habitually associate with certain species of dolphins (porpoises). Commercial fishermen developed a technique called purse-seine fishing “on porpoise” where they encircle porpoises with nets to catch the tuna swimming beneath them. Despite efforts to free trapped porpoises, this fishing method resulted in substantial incidental deaths, with estimates ranging from 312,400 in 1971 to 130,000 in 1975. The Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 imposed a moratorium on taking marine mammals but provided a two-year exemption for commercial fishing operations. After this exemption expired in 1974, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) issued permits to the American Tunaboat Association allowing continued purse-seine fishing despite acknowledging that it lacked knowledge about porpoise populations, their optimum sustainable levels, or the effect of the takings on these populations. The permits also failed to specify the number of porpoises that could be taken.
Only StudyBuddy Pro offers the complete Case Brief Anatomy*
Access the most important case brief elements for optimal case understanding.
*Case Brief Anatomy includes: Brief Prologue, Complete Case Brief, Brief Epilogue
- The Brief Prologue provides necessary case brief introductory information and includes:
Topic:
Identifies the topic of law and where this case fits within your course outline.Parties:
Identifies the cast of characters involved in the case.Procedural Posture & History:
Shares the case history with how lower courts have ruled on the matter.Case Key Terms, Acts, Doctrines, etc.:
A case specific Legal Term Dictionary.Case Doctrines, Acts, Statutes, Amendments and Treatises:
Identifies and Defines Legal Authority used in this case.
- The Case Brief is the complete case summarized and authored in the traditional Law School I.R.A.C. format. The Pro case brief includes:
Brief Facts:
A Synopsis of the Facts of the case.Rule of Law:
Identifies the Legal Principle the Court used in deciding the case.Facts:
What are the factual circumstances that gave rise to the civil or criminal case? What is the relationship of the Parties that are involved in the case.Issue(s):
Lists the Questions of Law that are raised by the Facts of the case.Holding:
Shares the Court's answer to the legal questions raised in the issue.Concurring / Dissenting Opinions:
Includes valuable concurring or dissenting opinions and their key points.Reasoning and Analysis:
Identifies the chain of argument(s) which led the judges to rule as they did.
- The Brief Prologue closes the case brief with important forward-looking discussion and includes:
Policy:
Identifies the Policy if any that has been established by the case.Court Direction:
Shares where the Court went from here for this case.