NFA Gun Trust Lawyer Blog

We have had several clients ask us for an inventory sheet for  to keep with the firearms assets in their trust.  The following excel template will allow you to track all of your firearms and note which are registered and which are subject to the ATF.  You can modify the document to meet your needs and it can provide your successor trustee additional help and guidance in the event of your incapacity or death. Firearms-inventory.xls

We have created a reference page for questions related to Form 20 and transportation.  Please visit  http://www.GunTrustLawyer.com/form20.html  for more information and to download a pdf version of the ATF Form 20 - f532020-20.

Often I am asked What is the difference between an NFA Specific Trust and a normal estate planning trust.  While both if properly created can facilitate the purchase of NFA related firearms and weapons, the NFA trust deals with the unique issues surrounding NFA Firearms ownership, transfer, and possession.  No matter what type of entity is used for purchasing Title II firearms, it is important to not to mix non firearms related items with the firearms.  If the NFA items are used incorrectly by you, or someone else with or without your knowledge, you do not want to risk your livelihood, business assets, or personal assets by placing them in the same trust.

When planning for the unknown event or set of circumstances we need to treat a Silencer, SBR, SBS, or Machine Gun differently than a picture on the wall.  Quicken if used properly can properly transfer a picture, couch, CD, or most typical assets, but is not setup to inform our yet to be identified survivors on how to deal with issues like the NFA, ATF, Title II firearms, or Form 4 transfers. 

Each person's needs are unique and a properly drafted NFA trust will be customized for that person and their family.

NFA Trust Attorney David Goldman and the Gun Trust Lawyer®'s blog have 40 NFA trust attorneys who are licensed in states around the country. If you need help creating a NFA Firearms Trust to purchase, hold, or use items restricted by the NFA or help when your CLEO will not sign your Form 4 or Form 1 transfer of Class 3 licensed Title II firearms Contact a Gun Trust Attorney in any State or for help with a Florida or South Carolina Gun trust contact us.

Yesterday I met Dick Heller at the Shot Show in Orlando.  He autographed a card and asked that it be copied and distributed to others.  I will post it when I get back to the office next week.

Dick Heller and two other plaintiffs filed suits against the District of Columbia's revised gun laws. The complaint challenges the following provisions of D.C. law:

• The ban on all self-loading handguns (about 3/4 of handguns sold in the U.S.) by defining them as "machine guns."
• Allowing registration only upon the payment of an unspecified fee for ballistic testing of the handgun.
• The self-defense provision in the D.C. law which allows a gun in the home to be loaded, unlocked, and rendered functional only "while it is being used to protect against a reasonably perceived threat of immediate harm to a person within the registrant's home." The exception is too narrow, and burdens the right of self-defense.
• The complaint further alleges that the aforesaid provisions are not only violations of the Second Amendment, they exceed the non-infinite home rule powers which Congress delegated to the District's city council.

There are some other problems with the new D.C. law. Handgun possession is allowed only for a person who wants the handgun for home defense; it is illegal in D.C. to acquire a handgun for recreational target shooting, to practice marksmanship before enrolling in the military or joining a police department, or for lawful hunting Maryland or Virginia. The only time that a gun can be unlocked is when it being used for self-defense against an immediate attack; accordingly, it is illegal to remove the lock from an unloaded gun in order to clean the gun. The problem would be resolved by the requested relief of enjoining all enforcement of the gun lock law against defensive firearms.

Attorneys in the case are Stephen Halbrook and Richard Gardiner, of Fairfax, Virginia. They both been involved in firearms law and policy for three decades, and they are excellent lawyers. Halbrook has a 4-0 record as lead counsel in Supreme Court cases.

Although Heller and his team funded the original litigation on their own they have set up a foundation to help fund this litigation. 

Pendleton Safe Company of Georgia introduced a new concept in a Firearms safe at the Shot Show in Orlando this week.

The inside of the safe is lighted and rotates for easy access to the firearm or item of choice.

Some of the features are:

• Hassle-free access makes cleaning your guns a breeze
• No gun is an obstacle... you're always one gun away
• Less handling improves gun condition
• Unique revolving design makes storing simple
• More guns in less space
• The only safe built with the pistol collector in mind:
• Original pistol shelving technology
• Accommodates large pistol collections
• Effortlessly show off your collection without ever touching a gun

They have several sizes and expect to be shipping later this year.

If you are looking for a great gun safe you should check out their products at Pendletonsafes.com

Saw this product at the ShotShow and thought it was great.

Safetybulllet.com Now, for the first time in history, you can have a safety device that works when your gun is unloaded or loaded. More importantly, it allows you to make your gun ready to fire faster than any other safety device made. It takes less than 1 second to remove the Safety Bullet® and load a lethal round!! ONE SECOND! Yet, if your child finds your firearm and pulls the trigger, if you have a Safety Bullet® installed, your gun will just become instantly disabled. There is nothing else like this in the market place, nothing!! It's fast, easy, fast, simple, fast, and safe.


Advantages of the Safety Bullet

1. Easy to load!
2. Easy to remove!
3. Loads and unloads in the blink of an eye!
4. Keeps unauthorized users from firing your gun!
5. Makes your firearm ready to fire faster than any other Patented Safety Device in the world!
6. To anyone looking at your gun it looks like there is no safety device on it, because there isn't one. This device is not on your gun it is IN your gun.
7. For less that $ 25.00 you can protect your family and yourself from an Accidental Shooting!

There are several articles on AR15.com that discuss trusts for Title II firearms.  While much of the information is correct, there are a few problems with the articles and what is stated does not apply in all states.  You should have your trust verified by a lawyer for compliance with the NFA and state laws. 

Remember, although Quicken can be used to create a trust - the resulting trust is not appropriate for NFA items. There are many problems with these trusts and compliance with state laws.  For an example of the problems with Quicken 2009 you might read

Using Quicken to prepare a trust: The good, the bad, and ugly!

A program has been created to offer education and training to dealers selling items restricted by the NFA.  This program will work in conjunction with attorneys licensed in their state to provide free education on the advantages and proper uses of a NFA Gun trust to purchase Title II firearms under state and federal laws to residents of their state and residents of another state.  If your dealership sells Title II firearms and is interested in having your staff trained on these important issues Contact Us to schedule training.

The Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade Show and Conference (SHOT Show) is the largest and most comprehensive trade show for all professionals involved with the shooting sports and hunting industries. It is the world's premier exposition of combined firearms, ammunition, archery, cutlery, outdoor apparel, optics, camping and related products and services. The SHOT Show attracts buyers from all 50 states and more than 75 countries. The SHOT Show is owned and sponsored by the National Shooting Sports Foundation and is produced and managed by Reed Exhibitions.

The 2009 Show
January 15-18, 2009 - Orange County Convention Center
Orlando, FL

The FBI Criminal Background Check System (NICS) reported a 24% increase in December over last year.  Over 1.5 Million checks was an increase of 42% over November and the highest number of checks in history.

As a result in the unprecedented demand for the ATF Forms 4473 (5300.9) part I which was revised in August 2008 is running low on inventory.  To address this shortage  ATF has posted a notice on its Web site authorizing a temporary measure of allowing FFL's to photocopy form 4473 in its entirety.

Of course, an option is to use the electronic form, E-4473, available from the ATF.gov Web site.