Bycatch
A Court of Appeal of New Zealand judgement of 7 April 2004, (with the reasons issued separately on 13 July 2004 (CA39/04)), overturned a decision by the Minister of Fisheries that only 62 sea lions could be taken as bycatch by squid fishers, based on advice from the New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries. The Court increased the bycatch to 124 sea lions in the 2004 season, saying the Minister's imposition of the lower figure (one of the lowest ever imposed in the 20-year history of such restrictions) was going beyond what the law required.
In January 2009 the Fisheries Minister allowed a kill of 113 sea lions by the squid fishery, an increase in 40 percent over the previous season. This was condemned by the Forest and Bird conservation organisation since the sea lion population is under threat and in decline.
Read more about this topic: New Zealand Sea Lion