Securing protections for marine protected areas in Europe

This impact story is part of our TrustLaw Awards series to celebrate the extraordinary pro bono projects undertaken by legal teams to support NGOs, social enterprises and independent media with the support of TrustLaw.    

Pro bono legal research by Hogan Lovells Cadwalader helped the Environmental Justice Foundation expose failures to enforce marine protection laws across Europe. The work strengthened legal challenges and advocacy efforts aimed at holding governments accountable and turning Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) from protected areas on paper into real protection at sea. 

The ocean is the blue beating heart of our planet. It regulates the climate, absorbs vast amounts of heat and carbon dioxide, produces around half of the world’s oxygen, and supports the food security and livelihoods of billions of people. Its health is inseparable from the health of communities, economies and ecosystems worldwide. 

That is why MPAs exist: to safeguard ocean life, fragile seabeds and coastal ecosystems from damaging human activities, and give marine habitats a chance to recover. 

But in many of Europe’s protected seas, one of the most destructive forms of fishing continues. Bottom trawling drags heavy fishing gear across the seabed, damaging marine habitats and undermining biodiversity recovery.  

The Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), an international organisation seeking to protect the environment and support communities who depend on it, has been working to expose the gap between Europe’s conservation commitments and what is really happening at sea. The scale of the issue is stark: EJF and partner organisations found bottom trawling taking place in 77% of France’s, 85% of Germany’s and 44% of Italy’s MPAs. 

Building the legal case 

EJF wanted to understand how EU conservation laws could be used to challenge bottom trawling in marine protected areas and hold governments accountable where existing protections were not being properly implemented or enforced. To do this, the organisation needed legal research across several European jurisdictions to assess how existing laws, regulatory frameworks and enforcement mechanisms could be used to strengthen accountability and improve marine environmental protections.  

Through TrustLaw, EJF collaborated with pro bono lawyers from Hogan Lovells Cadwalader on a cross-border legal research project. Hogan Lovells Cadwalader examined the legality of bottom trawling in MPAs across multiple European jurisdictions. Their research looked at relevant laws, court decisions, and regulatory frameworks, including rules on fishing licences, environmental assessments, enforcement powers and potential routes for legal action. 

This support gave EJF’s campaign for ocean protection a stronger legal foundation, helping connect its investigative and advocacy work – concrete legal avenues to improve implementation and enforcement of existing laws. It helped expose gaps in bottom trawling regulation across Europe, identify weaknesses in enforcement, and demonstrate how legal and policy arguments could be used to hold authorities accountable for failing to adequately protect marine habitats. 

From research to action

In April 2025, EJF and partner organisations filed a formal complaint with the European Commission against France, Germany and Italy, alleging serious and systemic failures to protect vulnerable marine ecosystems under EU law. The complaint focused on 15 protected sites, where evidence showed bottom trawling continuing at scale. 

The pro bono legal research helped underpin this work by strengthening the legal basis of the complaints and supporting a coordinated, cross-border challenge to the continued failure of authorities to prevent damaging fishing activity in MPAs despite existing legal obligations. These efforts form part of a wider body of legal action and advocacy contributing to growing recognition in EU law – including recent Court of Justice of the EU rulings – that MPAs must be effectively safeguarded from harmful fishing practices. 

For EJF, the findings from the legal research became central to their advocacy efforts.

“Pro bono legal support helped us piece together the true scale of how bottom trawling is devastating Europe’s supposedly protected seas. What began as research became a legal case in one of the highest courts in France, as well as a coalition complaint to the European Commission, and we are continuing to turn evidence into action and drive accountability to protect ocean life and coastal communities.” Marie Colombier, Senior Ocean Campaigner, Environmental Justice Foundation 

Pro bono expertise supporting impact

For the lawyers involved, the project was an opportunity to use their legal and strategic expertise to support an urgent environmental issue with global significance. 

“The chance to effect real change and to advance marine nature protection through our legal and strategic advice motivated us for this project. We are proud that we assisted on this complex cross-border issue and made a real impact.” Dr. Malte Kramer, Senior Associate, and Alica Ewen, Projects Associate, Hogan Lovells Cadwalader 

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