NFA Gun Trust Lawyer Blog

The Second Amendment Foundation today won a significant victory for concealed carry when the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals let stand a December ruling by a three-judge panel of the court that forces Illinois to adopt a concealed carry law, thus affirming that the right to bear arms exists outside the home.

Continue reading "Huge Win for Gun Rights in Illinois" »

Starting January 1, 2013 you will be able to purchase, transfer, make, possess, and use a SBR in IL. At first glance it appears to be very limited and only apply those with a valid and active military re-enacting group membership to use them for military re-enacting. But there is an interesting exception, those with a Valid C & R license can also own them.

The Law is poorly written and leaves many questions unanswered. A Gun Trust cannot have a C&R license but a Trustee of a Gun Trust Can have a C&R license. The question is will ATF understand allow A Trust to purchase a SBR if all Illinois based Trustee's (the authorized users) have a C & R License as required under IL law. If not you will still need a CLEO sign off because you can't have a C&R within a Trust.

Also once you modify a C&R firearm it no longer retains its C&R status but the Illinois law is different than similar laws in CA because if you have a C&R license, you can buy any SBR not just a C&R SBR.

In Summary, SBR's are legal in IL if you have a C&R regardless of whether the SBR is an SBR. Can you use a Trust? That's up in the air at this time. You should be able to if every Trustee in the state has a C&R but we do not know what the ATF's position will be.

The Supreme Court has ruled today in an opinion by Judge Alito that the 2nd Amendment applies to the states through the 14th. More to come later. If you want to read the decision it's posted on the Supreme Court Website - McDonald v. Chicago or from our website McDonald_v_Chicago.pdf

With the recent discussions about the potential federal ban on assault weapons being reinstated,  I thought it would be interesting to see which states already have bans on Assault Weapons

California bans "assault weapons", .50BMG caliber firearms, some .50 caliber ammunition and "unsafe handguns."

Connecticut  Bans "assault weapons" as well as select fire machine guns.

District of Columbia prohibits new acquisition of handguns and any semi-automatic firearm capable of using a detachable ammunition magazine of more than 12 rounds capacity and any handgun not registered after February 5, 1977  (parts recently ruled unconstitutional).

Hawaii prohibits "assault pistols."  Assault rifles and shotguns are restricted the same regular rifles and shotguns

Illinois: Chicago, Evanston, Oak Park, Morton Grove, Winnetka, Wilmette, and Highland Park prohibit handguns; some cities prohibit other kinds of firearms.  Firearms identification card is required.

Maryland prohibits "assault pistols"; the sale or manufacture of any handgun manufactured after Jan. 1, 1985, that does not appear on the Handgun Roster; and the sale of any handgun manufactured after January 1, 2003 that is not equipped with an "integrated mechanical safety device."

Massachusetts: It is unlawful to sell, transfer or possess "any assault weapon or large capacity feeding device" [more than 10 rounds] that was not legally possessed on September 13, 1994 and the sale of handguns not on the Firearms Roster. The City of Boston has a separate "assault weapons" law.

Michigan: Certain folding stock carbines are restricted.

New Jersey  bans "assault weapons" and high capacity magazines.

New York  bans "assault weapons" unless lawfully possessed or manufactured prior to September 13, 1994.

Ohio: Some local jurisdictions use to ban "assault weapons.", but because of a Ohio Supreme court case, all of these laws are unconstitutional under the preemption doctrine recognized by Ohio.

Virginia prohibits "Street Sweeper" shotguns.

The sunset of the federal assault weapons ban does not affect the validity of state and local "assault weapons" bans.

There are several type of Class 3 items that are restricted by the National Firearms Act.

Each state can impose additional restrictions on the sale, purchase, and transfer of class 3 firearms in addition to the compliance that is required with the national Firearms Act.

In Illinois you can own the following items that are regulated the the National Firearms Act

There does not appear to be a direct prohibition of Any Other Weapon's (AOW) but some or most AOW's appear to be banned under additional terms of the Illinois Statutes. In addition, certain C&R firearms appear to be legal. Technically these are not considered to be restricted under the NFA.
Destructive Devices (DD)Only Class 9

In Ilinois you cannot own the following NFA restricted items.

Machine Guns
Silencers
Short Barreled Shotguns (SBS)
Short Barreled Rifles (SBR)

Follow this link to find out more about Ilinois and NFA restrictions on Class 3 Firearms

Note: Only class 9 Destructive Devices are allowed in Illinois.