Battle arises against attempted Norwegian seizure of Maine fishing grounds. 8/3/21

 Preeminent lawyer Wesley Horton retained to defend against the City of Belfast’s attempt to take private property

(BELFAST, MAINE AUGUST 3, 2021)—Upstream Watch has retained the legal services of Attorney Wesley Horton, who successfully argued in the United States Supreme Court the leading eminent domain case in America, Kelo v New London. This is in response to the City of Belfast’s attempt to take for Nordic Aquafarms the private property of two Belfast residents. 

Nordic Aquafarms has to date been unable to acquire clear title to the land they claim to need for their proposed pipelines. To help Nordic, on August 3 the Belfast city Council will consider whether to take the land Nordic says it needs by eminent domain (Item 10C on the agenda). Council members Mike Hurley and Neal Harkness have both stated that the city needs this privately owned land so that they can allow Nordic to put their pipes through it. 

Item 10C does not offer any explanation of what is proposed but only cites “23 MRS 3022 and 30-A MRS 3101” to vaguely describe this agenda item. When asked to explain item 10C, Michael Hurley replied “Ask your lawyer”. Taking private property by the government for private gain has serious legal consequences.

Upstream Watch has been preparing for this possibility, and has added to their legal team some of the top lawyers in the country: Attorneys David Silk and David Perkins and Attorney David Losee have been joined by Wesley Horton and Michael Taylor of Horton, Dowd, Bartschi and Levesque. They will be coordinating closely with Attorney Kim Ervin Tucker who is representing the Friends of Harriet L. Hartley Conservation Area and property owners Judith Grace and Jeffrey Mabee from whom the property would be taken..

Wesley Horton’s list of cases on which he appears as counsel spans 35 years. He has argued over 125 cases to the Connecticut Supreme Court. Most notably, he argued and prevailed before the U.S. Supreme Court in the notable condemnation case, Kelo v. New London, 545 U.S. 469 (2005).

Amy Grant of Upstream Watch states “Frankly, it is baffling why the city would pursue this incredibly expensive and ill-fated scheme. We are fortunate to have an unparalleled team of eminent domain litigation experts onboard who are ready to defend against the City of Belfast’s illegal taking of private property. Just because the city wants to take private property doesn’t make it right or legal”