BELLEVUE, Wash. — June 5, 2025 — In a landmark ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court handed a major win to the firearms community today by throwing out the First Circuit’s ruling in Estados Unidos Mexicanos v. Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc., et. al.
Originally filed in 2021, the lawsuit sought billions in damages alleging the American gun manufacturer was liable for Mexican drug cartel violence. The case had been properly dismissed by the district court, but that decision was subsequently reversed by the First Circuit Court of Appeals, allowing the case to proceed. SAF filed an important Amicus Brief with the Supreme Court in the case explaining how bad lawfare against gun manufacturers ultimately hurt the American public by choking out access to constitutionally protected goods.
“The ultimate goal of this lawsuit was simple – bankrupt the firearms industry, at the ultimate peril of the American people,” said SAF Executive Director Adam Kraut. “Thankfully, the Supreme Court saw through this thinly veiled attempt to wield the legal system as a cudgel against lawful commerce.”
SAF’s brief in the case outlined the history of firearms litigation and explained why both the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) and common law prohibit lawsuits premised on the legal theory Mexico – in cahoots with multiple gun control groups – attempted. Put simply, gun manufacturers cannot be held liable for lawfully manufacturing and placing into the stream of commerce, legal (and constitutionally protected) goods, if ultimately those goods are criminally misused.
“Mexico was merely trying to hold U.S. firearms manufacturers responsible for cartel violence committed in their country,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “This is exactly the type of bad faith lawsuit the PLCAA was designed to block at the courtroom steps. In reaffirming these basic principles, the Supreme Court has sent a clear message to that they’re going to need to go back to the drawing board to invent a new disingenuous way to attack our rights.”
For more information, visit saf.org.
The Second Amendment Foundation (saf.org) is the nation’s oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group dedicated to safeguarding and promoting the fundamental rights of individuals enshrined in the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. SAF engages in aggressive legal action to ensure the principles of armed self-defense, personal liberty, and the ownership of arms are defended, secured, and restored. Through public education initiatives, SAF teaches the importance of the Second Amendment to promote a society that values and exercises the right to keep and bear arms.
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