January 20, 2023

AG Coalition Targets Gun Industry with Second Circuit Briefing in Support of New York Statute

Lori Kalani, Bernard Nash

Cozen O'Connor

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Cozen O'Connor

A coalition of 18 AGs filed an amicus brief in National Shooting Sports Foundation v. James, a case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in which a group of gun manufacturers and distributors are challenging a New York firearms liability statute.
The AGs’ brief was filed in support of the statute, which creates a public nuisance cause of action allowing private citizens to bring suit against the gun industry for endangering the public through the manufacturing, importing, marketing, or sales of firearms. The AGs argue that state laws providing remedies for the unlawful sale and marketing of firearms benefit the public by encouraging responsible business practices, and that the public nuisance statute represents a permissible use of New York’s state sovereignty that is not preempted by federal law.
The statute at issue, New York General Business Law §§ 898-a-e, took effect in 2021. The plaintiffs were denied a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the statute by the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York and are appealing that ruling to the Second Circuit.

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