“Renzulli Run Down” — The RLF Firearms and Shooting Sports Industry Newsletter
FIREARMS IMPORT-EXPORT UPDATE PART III – ENFORCEMENT OF EXPORT LAWS BY THE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AND THE VOLUNTARY SELF-DISCLOSURE PROGRAM
February 12, 2021 This is the third and final update regarding the valuable information obtained from the NSSF’s January 11-14 firearms import-export webinars. As explained in our January 21 and January 26 updates, jurisdiction over the export of the majority of firearms and ammunition was formally transferred from the Department of State to the Department…
UNDERTAKING A RECALL: WHAT A MANUFACTURER SHOULD KNOW
February 5, 2021 UNDERTAKING A RECALL: WHAT A MANUFACTURER SHOULD KNOW Christopher Renzulli and Howard Schilsky of Renzulli Law Firm, LLP were published in the February 2021 edition of Westchester Lawyer Magazine for their article addressing the legal implications of undertaking a recall. Whether to issue a recall of a product, and how to effectively…
TRADEMARK MODERNIZATION ACT OF 2020 ESTABLISHES NEW RULES FOR NON-U.S. OWNERS OF REGISTRATIONS ISSUED UNDER §§ 66(A) AND 44(E) OF U.S. TRADEMARK ACT
February 1, 2021 In the waning days of 2020, the United States Congress enacted and President Trump signed into law the Trademark Modernization Act of 2020 (“TMA”). The legislation establishes a new category of administrative proceeding within the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) and may significantly impact the way non-U.S. firearms companies and other…
FIREARMS IMPORT-EXPORT UPDATE PART I – DETERMINING THE APPLICABLE ECCN AND NEED FOR AN EXPORT LICENSE
January 21, 2021 We attended the NSSF’s January 11-14 firearms import-export webinars so that we can pass on the valuable information to those of you who were unable to attend. As many of you know, jurisdiction over the export of the majority of firearms and ammunition was formally transferred from the Department of State to…
“Hearing Protection Act” Aimed at Eliminating Red Tape for the Purchase of Suppressors Reintroduced in the 117th Congress
January 16, 2021 H.R. 155, the Hearing Protection Act, first introduced to Congress in 2015, was reintroduced on January 4, 2021, by Republican Congressman from South Carolina, Jeff Duncan. The bill, if passed into law, would remove suppressors from the National Firearms Act (NFA), removing several restrictions on the purchase and possession of suppressors. A…
REPRESENTATIVE HUDSON REINTRODUCES BILL TO ALLOW INTERSTATE CARRY OF CONCEALED HANDGUNS
January 8, 2021 On January 4, 2021, the opening day of the 117th Congress, North Carolina Representative Richard Hudson introduced H.R. 38, the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act (“CCRA”). This bill would allow a qualified individual to carry a concealed firearm in another state that allows individuals to carry concealed firearms. In order to be considered…
SUPREME COURT PETITIONED TO ADDRESS NEW YORK CONCEALED CARRY LAW
December 31, 2020 As Renzulli Law Firm reported, New York State Rifle & Pistol Association (NYSRPA) previously challenged New York City’s restriction on traveling with firearms outside of New York City. Although the Supreme Court accepted the case for review, New York City removed its restrictions before the case was heard by the Court. The…
THINGS TO REMEMBER WHEN GIFTING FIREARMS THIS HOLIDAY SEASON
December 23, 2020 With the Holidays upon us, the tradition of last minute, frenzied gift buying is in full swing. For sport shooters, hunters, and collectors what could be better than receiving a brand new firearm or a family heirloom that is being passed down to a younger generation? Despite our good intentions, there are…
ATF TAKING STEPS TO CLASSIFY PISTOLS WITH STABILIZING BRACES AS SHORT-BARRELED RIFLES
December 18, 2020 The ATF is expected to publish a notice in the Federal Register today regarding “Objective Factors for Classifying Weapons with ‘Stabilizing Braces.’”. This notice suggests that the ATF is changing its interpretation of firearms with stabilizing braces and will treat the majority of them as short-barreled rifles that are subject to the National Firearms…
WHAT DOES A BIDEN ADMINISTRATION MEAN FOR THE FIREARMS INDUSTRY?
December 14, 2020 While President Trump’s legal challenges to the election results continue, it becomes more apparent every day that on January 20, 2021, Joseph R. Biden Jr. will be sworn in as the 46th President of the United States. What does a Biden administration mean for the firearms industry? Biden’s team released an extensive…
RLF CONVINCES PA SUPERIOR COURT TO WITHDRAW DECISION DECLARING THE PLCAA UNCONSTITUTIONAL
December 4, 2020 Renzulli Law Firm was successful in convincing the Pennsylvania Superior Court (the state’s intermediate appellate court) to withdraw its prior decision declaring the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (“PLCAA”) to be unconstitutional. A September 28, 2020 decision by a three-judge panel had held that Congress did not have the authority to…
HAPPY THANKSGIVING – A PERFECT TIME TO HUNT
November 25, 2020 As Thanksgiving Day approaches, we look forward to seeing family and enjoying a fantastic home cooked meal with the people we love. This is a time to be grateful for the things in our lives that we often take for granted. For many, however, Thanksgiving is also inescapably linked to hunting season. …
PROPOSED LEGISLATION SEEKS TO REPEAL RESTRICTIONS ON THE ATF
November 20, 2020 U.S. Representative Don Beyer (D-VA) and U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) recently introduced S. 4841, the ATF Improvement and Modernization Act of 2020 (“AIM Act”) which would repeal numerous restrictions on the ATF that have been added to federal law through appropriations bills over the years. Among other provisions, the AIM Act would…
FEDERAL LEGISLATION INTRODUCED TO CIRCUMVENT THE PLCAA
November 11, 2020 Democratic members of Congress have introduced the Stopping the Fraudulent Sales of Firearms Act (S. 4718/HR __) to make it easier for plaintiffs to plead around the immunity provided by the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (“PLCAA”). The Stopping the Fraudulent Sales of Firearms Act is an effort to provide a federal…
CALIFORNIA VOTES “YES” ON NEW PRIVACY RIGHTS ACT
November 9, 2020 California voters cast their ballots for more than elected officials on Election Night. In a ballot initiative titled Proposition 24, Californians voted “yes” to strengthen existing data privacy laws with the implementation of the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA). The CPRA is intended to strengthen the existing California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA),…
MICHIGAN JUDGE STRIKES DOWN SECRETARY OF STATE’S DIRECTIVE BANNING OPEN CARRY AT POLLING PLACES ON ELECTION DAY
October 31, 2020 Michigan Court of Claims Judge Christopher Murray recently issued a preliminary injunction against Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s directive banning the open carry of firearms at polling places on Election Day. Secretary of State Benson, also acting as the state’s chief elections officer, issued the directive banning open carry at polling…
RLF PROVES FIREARMS DEALER DID IT RIGHT – CASE AND APPEAL DISMISSED (UPDATE)
October 23, 2020 On October 16, 2020 the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania issued an Order declining to review the appeal in a lawsuit by a customer against a Pennsylvania firearms retailer for slander and for allegedly failing to adequately supervise and control its employees during an altercation with a customer. This ruling brings finality to…
ATF ISSUES UPDATED FIREARMS TRANSFER PROCEDURES
October 6, 2020 The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (“ATF”) recently released two updated Procedure documents, Procedures 2020-1 and 2020-2, which supersede the ATF’s previous guidance regarding the sale and transfer of firearms by FFLs to purchasers off of the FFL’s business premises and an FFL’s facilitation of firearms transfers between private parties.…
SETTLEMENT OF CASE AGAINST MGM ARISING FROM LAS VEGAS SHOOTING
October 6, 2020 Numerous persons who were shot during the October 1, 2017 shooting at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas, families of persons who were killed, and others claiming non-physical injuries, previously filed lawsuits against MGM in Nevada state court. Those cases were consolidated into a single action, captioned Shepherd v. MGM,…
TEXAS JUSTICE – HANDGUN MANUFACTURER DISMISSED AT EARLY STAGES OF TWO LAWSUITS BASED ON PLCAA IMMUNITY
September 23, 2020 Litigators in the Lone Star State are the first to admit: justice often doesn’t come swiftly in Texas courts. And parties to lawsuits can attest that when a case drags on through the court system – even where there are strong defenses – it will be a costly endeavor for the client. …
LEGISLATION INTRODUCED IN NEW LAW TO CIRCUMVENT THE PROTECTION OF LAWFUL COMMERCE IN ARMS ACT
September 11, 2020 A Democratic member of the New York Senate recently introduced S-8926A, which would add a new provision to the General Business Law (proposed Article 39-DDDD), that aims to make it easier to file lawsuits against federal firearms licensees (“FFLs”). The proposed law seeks to circumvent the immunity provided to FFLs by the Protection…
CALIFORNIA ADOPTS FINAL CCPA REGULATIONS
September 4, 2020 The California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) approved the final proposed regulations for compliance with the California Consumer Protection Act (CCPA). Enforcement of the first robust data privacy law in the nation commenced on July 1, 2020. The CCPA was enacted in 2018 and established consumer rights to access to, deletion…
FOUR CITIES AND EVERYTOWN FOR GUN SAFETY SUE ATF TO CHANGE DEFINITION OF FIREARM
On August 26, 2020, the cities of Syracuse, San Jose, Chicago, and Columbia (SC), and the gun control group Everytown for Gun Safety, sued the ATF in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York seeking to require it to change the definition of a firearm to apply to “ghost guns.” A firearm…
RICHMOND TO EXPAND BAN ON FIREARMS
August 20, 2020 Last week, Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney introduced an ordinance that would expand the city’s current ban on carrying firearms in city-owned and operated parks and facilities. The new ordinance would “prohibit the possession, carrying or transportation of any firearms in any public street, road, alley, sidewalk, public right-of-way or any open public…