The swell shark is not targeted commercially (Moreno-Báez et al. 2012). While this species is taken as a minor bycatch in gillnets and trawls, its habitat (rocky reefs and kelp) is generally unsuitable for trawling, providing the species protection from fishing. Swell Shark is captured in both the small scale lobster trap fishery and the set gill net fishery as a small percentage of the bycatch in Baja California, Mexico (Shester and Micheli 2011). Approximately 1% of gill net landings along the pacific coast of Baja California are comprised of this species, and it is absent from long line catches (Ramirez-Amaro et al. 2013). Ramirez-Amaro et al. (2013) also noted that this species was usually caught as juveniles, suggesting that fishing effort might be opportunistically targeting nursery areas. A survey of the artisanal gillnet fishery in Baja California found that this species comprised only 1% of total elasmobranch catches, and was not valued either for its flesh or fins. This study also found carcasses of this species at discard sites surrounding fishing camps, representing only 0.6% of all carcasses (Cartamil et al. 2011). Along the Sonoran coast of the Gulf of California in Mexico, (Bizzarro et al. 2009) observed that this species is landed by artisanal fishers, however, it represented less that 1% of the total catch. There was no size difference among landed males and females, however, there was 2-fold more males landed than females.
This species is listed by the United States National Marine Fisheries Service as a landed species, however, there are no listings for this species in any recent years (PacFin). For the years in which this species was recorded, there were minimal landings, with only 1978 having the west coast shark fishery land more than 1,000 pounds (Holts, 1988).
However fisheries data often lists shark as “other”, which could possibly obfuscate true landings. This is especially true in Mexico, where small sharks are simply listed as cazonés. However, species-specific surveys in Baja California do suggest that this species may indeed be relatively uncommon in catches. This species is occasionally taken by recreational anglers and spearfishers (Compagno in prep), but this catch is likely not significant.