It’s almost been a three-decade battle for about 5,000 out-of-state commercial fisherman, a battle against the state of Alaska that’s finally winding down.
This week, Anchorage Superior Court Judge Andrew Guidi signed a final $33.5 million judgment against the state in a class action lawsuit that originated with a case filed in 1984.
It became known as the Carlson case, after one of the first plaintiffs, Don Carlson, who bought non-resident permits for fishing at a rate that was triple what an Alaskan fishermen would pay.
The courts sided with Carlson and others who joined the case that those fees were too high. The state was ordered to refund some of the fees — but the litigation dragged out, because the state appealed the case five times in the Alaska Supreme Court.
Lance Nelson, Senior Assistant Attorney General, says the litigation led to new policies.
It was literally the first of its kind in the United States, deciding how much a state could charge as a differential for non-residents in commercial fishing, said Nelson. So it literally took four decisions from the Alaska Supreme Court before the parties knew what the rules were.
In those earlier decisions, the high court ruled that it was OK for the state to charge higher rates for non-resident fishermen, but that the state had to show those rates were tied to the actual costs of managing and protecting the fishery.
Bruce Gabrys, a past president of the United Cook Inlet Drift Association, says the state should have reevaluated its pricing policies much earlier than it did and not force the fishermen to go to court.
Why should this drag on for 28 years? said Gabris, I’m glad it’s finally resolved. It cost the fishermen a lot of money.
Schurz Communications