The Second Amendment Foundation has filed an important amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court supporting the firearms industry in its defense of the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), which is being attacked through a lawsuit against gun manufacturers by the Mexican government. The case is known as Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc., et.al., v. Estados Unidos Mexicanos.

SAF is represented by attorneys Thomas R. McCarthy and Tiffany H. Bates of Consovoy McCarthy PLLC in Arlington, VA, through the Antonin Scalia Law School Supreme Court Clinic.

“Allowing Mexico to pierce the Protection in Lawful Commerce of Arms Act would result in foreign countries dictating the types of arms that should be commercially available to Americans,” explained SAF Executive Director Adam Kraut. “These types of lawsuits, like the one brought by Mexico, are designed with one purpose in mind - to bankrupt the firearms industry and drive it out of existence. Such a result is untenable and directly impacts the right to keep and bear arms. SAF will continue to assert itself in matters that impact American’s ability to acquire arms to exercise their Second Amendment rights."

“Mexico’s attempt to hold U.S. firearms manufacturers legally responsible for the criminal activity of others, in a foreign country, is precisely the type of lawsuit that Congress designed the PLCAA to block,” noted SAF Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “Mexico’s lawsuit isn’t just an attack on gun makers, it’s an effort to undermine the authority of Congress to protect manufacturers and consumers alike. As we note in our brief, if Mexico’s lawsuit is allowed to stand, it will result in a new wave of massively expensive litigation solely designed to crush the firearms industry and ultimately eviscerate the Second Amendment. That cannot be allowed to happen.”

Mexico’s lawsuit was originally rejected by U.S. District Judge Dennis Saylor—a George W. Bush appointee—in 2022. However, his decision was appealed to the liberal Boston-based U.S. First District Court of Appeals and overturned earlier this year.

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.