Summary

Ady Gil and Earthrace Ltd. v. Paul Watson and Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, Final Award, September 18, 2015, ICDR Case No. 50 20 1300 0952, and Agreed Settlement Order, Ady Gil v. Watson and Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (2:13-cv-00657-GW-PLA, January 8, 2016). In 2010, the Animal Planet cable TV show "Whale Wars" followed ships operated by anti-whaling organization Sea Shepard Conservation Society (SSCS) tracking and obstructing the Japanese whaling fleet i9n the Southern Ocean. Famously, Whale Wars aired a high-profile episode about a Japanese whaling boat ramming one of those vessels (the Ady Gil). During the events, the TV show had crew on the Ady Gil and two sister vessels "filming the efforts to block, delay or otherwise thwart the Japanese whaling activities." The Ady Gil later sank while being towed to a French base in Antarctica. This Final Award holds that Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and Paul Watson, the society's founder and former Executive Director, had intentionally and secretly scuttled the Ady Gil in the night, and then "stag[ed] ... false, after-the-fact conversations involving Mr. Watson, Mr. Swift and Mr. Bethune, for purposes of presenting a different narrative to the viewing public of the Whale Wars "reality show."" The related court order removes confidentiality from the arbitration award, which is now being circulated by the Ady Gil's owner.