October 9, 2025 — The U.S. Court of Appeals has agreed to hear an appeal by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Foundation (MBAF) regarding a defamation lawsuit launched against it by the Maine lobster industry.
Several members of the Maine lobster industry – including Bean Maine Lobster Inc., the Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association, Atwood Lobster LLC, and Bug Catcher Inc., owned by Gerry Cushman, a sixth-generation fisherman from Port Clyde, Maine, U.S.A. – along with the Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA) sued the MBAF over the foundation’s “red” listing of lobster.