September 21, 2026 — A Maine lobsterman is taking his fight against lobster and crab fishing boat trackers to the Supreme Court in a case that could have implications for the state’s fishing industry.
Frank Thompson, a fifth-generation lobsterman from near Vinalhaven, Maine, filed a federal lawsuit Carl Wilson, the commissioner of the Maine Department of Marine Resources, in 2023 over a Maine law complying with a federal mandate that requires lobstermen to install and continuously operate GPS trackers on their ships to keep their license.
A district court dismissed his case in 2023, as did an appeals court in 2025. He has now appealed the case to the Supreme Court, which is set to take it up on Sept. 28.