FILE – In this  Thursday, May 5, 2011 photo, NBA player Yao Ming sits near an inflatable shark during a break from filming a public service announcement about banning shark fin soup in Chinatown in San Francisco.  A federal appeals court Monday dismissed a legal challenge to a California law banning the sale, distribution and possession of shark fins. The 2-1 ruling upheld a lower court decision tossing the lawsuit brought by the Chinatown Neighborhood Association and Asian Americans for Political Advancement, a political action committee. Thursday, May 5, 2011. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)