District Court Judge to Hear Arguments in Lawsuit to Relist Lower 48 Gray Wolf

WHO: Earthjustice represents Defenders of Wildlife, Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club, National Parks Conservation Association, Oregon Wild, and Humane Society of the United States 

WHAT: Hearing of arguments in the legal case challenging the federal government’s 2020 decision to remove the gray wolf from U.S. Endangered Species Act protection. The lead case is titled Defenders of Wildlife et al v. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service et al (4:21-cv-00344-JSW). Senior U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey White of the Northern District of California will preside. Kristen Boyles of Earthjustice will represent Defenders of Wildlife and other plaintiffs during the hearing. 

WHEN: Friday, November 12 at 9:00 a.m. PT

WHERE: Friday’s hearing will be on Zoom: All counsel, members of the public, and media may access the webinar information at https://www.cand.uscourts.gov/jsw 
 
Zoom Hearing Instructions
Please click the link below to join webinars (public hearings). If you are a case participant, you will join as an attendee, then you will be brought into the proceeding by court staff.
https://cand-uscourts.zoomgov.com/j/1606745157?pwd=Q1FSb2lwcitwS1BYUDc0L2VXekR0UT09

MEDIA AVAILABILITY

The following experts are available for interviews and more information:

Kristen Boyles, Managing Attorney, Earthjustice (available following the hearing)
Jamie Rappaport Clark, President & CEO of Defenders of Wildlife
McCrystie Adams, Managing Attorney, Defenders of Wildlife

BACKGROUND

Conservation groups sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reverse the Trump administration’s 2020 gray wolf delisting rule and restore federal Endangered Species Act protections for the gray wolf in at least 44 of the lower 48 states, including the Great Lakes, central Rockies, and Pacific Coast states. This decision made wolves vulnerable to hunting, trapping, poisoning, and other lethal controls. Without federal protections, state laws threaten to undo decades of public restoration efforts and prevent the goal of true, nation wide wolf recovery.

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Defenders of Wildlife is dedicated to the protection of all native animals and plants in their natural communities. With nearly 2.2 million members and activists, Defenders of Wildlife is a leading advocate for innovative solutions to safeguard our wildlife heritage for generations to come. For more information, visit Defenders.org/newsroom and follow us on Twitter @Defenders.

Earthjustice is the premier nonprofit environmental law organization. We wield the power of law and the strength of partnership to protect people’s health, to preserve magnificent places and wildlife, to advance clean energy, and to combat climate change.
We are here because the earth needs a good lawyer.

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Jacob W. Frank/NPS