Smith & Wesson secures unanimous victory at U.S. Supreme Court, reinforcing that U.S. firearm manufacturers are not legally responsible for independent criminals' misuse of their products

Client(s) Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc.

On behalf of Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc., Jones Day secured a unanimous victory at the U.S. Supreme Court in a far-reaching suit brought by the government of Mexico, which sought to hold U.S. firearm manufacturers and distributors liable for gun violence perpetrated in Mexico by Mexican drug cartels. The Supreme Court held that Mexico’s basic theory—that U.S. firearm manufacturers do not do enough to prevent criminal misuse of their products by cartels in Mexico—ran afoul of the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA). The Court also held that Mexico’s attempts to plead around PLCAA fell short, because Mexico failed to plausibly allege that the defendant manufacturers aided and abetted unlawful sales of firearms to Mexican traffickers.

The Supreme Court's decision reversed the First Circuit's below, which had held that Mexico's suit met the requirements of a narrow exception to PLCAA allowing suits alleging knowing violations of firearms laws that proximately cause a plaintiff's injuries. As the Supreme Court explained, Mexico's broad, generic allegations against the defendant manufacturers plausibly alleged nothing more than the production of legal, constitutionally protected products that millions of Americans buy and use. Contrary to Mexico's claims, nothing about the alleged conduct amounted to aiding and abetting any crime. The Supreme Court's decision thus reinforces that firearm manufacturers are not legally responsible for criminals misusing their products.

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. v. Estados Unidos Mexicanos, No. 23-1141 (U.S.)