Turtle Island Restoration Network v. United States Department of Commerce

The question we consider is whether this action is barred by the thirty-day time limitation in 16 U.S.C. § 1855 (f), the judicial review provision of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976 (“Magnuson Act”), 16 U.S.C. §§ 1801 et seq. Section 1855(f) provides for judicial review of “[rjegulations promulgated” under the Magnuson Act, but only if “a petition for such review is filed within 30 days.”

Consistent with its authority under the Magnuson Act, the National Marine Fisheries Service (“NMFS”) issued regulations reopening the part of the Hawaii-based longline fishery that targets swordfish (the “swordfish fishery”). See Fisheries Off West Coast States and in the Western Pacific, 69 Fed.Reg. 17,329,17,330 (April 2, 2004). The fishery had been closed since 2002 due to its impact on endangered sea turtles. Approximately five months after publication of the regulation, the Turtle Island Restoration Network, KaTwa Lele, and the Center for Biological Diversity (collectively “Turtle Island”) filed suit against NMFS, the United States Department of Commerce and the Secretary of Commerce (collectively “NMFS”). The Hawaii Longline Association intervened as a…