{"id":2443341,"date":"2025-06-05T12:23:59","date_gmt":"2025-06-05T16:23:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/scotus-dismisses-mexico-suit-against-u-s-gun-manufacturers\/"},"modified":"2025-06-05T12:26:54","modified_gmt":"2025-06-05T16:26:54","slug":"scotus-dismisses-mexico-suit-against-u-s-gun-manufacturers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/scotus-dismisses-mexico-suit-against-u-s-gun-manufacturers\/","title":{"rendered":"SCOTUS Dismisses Mexico Suit Against U.S. Gun Manufacturers"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fscotus-dismisses-mexico-suit-against-u-s-gun-manufacturers%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2443341&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit brought by the Mexican government against American gun manufacturers. In a unanimous ruling by Associate Justice Elena Kagan, the Court resolute that the lawsuit was &#8220;barred&#8221; under the U.S. Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), which shields gun manufacturers and dealers from liability for damages caused by the misuse of their products. mexico&#8217;s lawsuit alleged that the <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >companies facilitated illegal gun smuggling<\/a> to drug cartels, claiming this led to harm in Mexico. However, the Court found that Mexico did not provide enough evidence that the manufacturers contributed unlawfully to the trafficking, thus rendering the case moot under the PLCAA. The ruling overturned a prior decision by the 1st Court of Appeals in favor of Mexico and sent the case back for further proceedings. Justices Clarence Thomas and Ketanji Brown Jackson also wrote concurring opinions, emphasizing the need for a careful interpretation of the PLCAA in future cases.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Man_Firing_SIG_Sauer_P239.jpg\">Noah Wulf\/Wikimedia Commons\/<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\/deed.en\">CC By-SA 4.0<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/05\/supreme-court-dismisses-mexico-lawsuit-against-u-s-gun-manufacturers\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Supreme%20Court%20Dismisses%20Mexico%20Lawsuit%20Against%20U.S.%20Gun%20Manufacturers&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/05\/supreme-court-dismisses-mexico-lawsuit-against-u-s-gun-manufacturers\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Supreme%20Court%20Dismisses%20Mexico%20Lawsuit%20Against%20U.S.%20Gun%20Manufacturers&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/05\/supreme-court-dismisses-mexico-lawsuit-against-u-s-gun-manufacturers\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/05\/supreme-court-dismisses-mexico-lawsuit-against-u-s-gun-manufacturers\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Supreme%20Court%20Dismisses%20Mexico%20Lawsuit%20Against%20U.S.%20Gun%20Manufacturers&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/05\/supreme-court-dismisses-mexico-lawsuit-against-u-s-gun-manufacturers\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court <a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/opinions\/24pdf\/23-1141_lkgn.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">dismissed<\/a> a lawsuit filed by the Mexican government against American gun manufacturers.<\/p>\n<p>Writing for a unanimous Court, Associate Justice Elena Kagan ruled that a 2021 lawsuit filed by Mexico against several U.S. gun companies is &ldquo;barred&rdquo; by the U.S. Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA). As The Federalist previously <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/04\/25\/heres-the-federalists-guide-to-this-years-biggest-supreme-court-cases\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>, that federal law &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/109th-congress\/senate-bill\/397\/text\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">protects<\/a>&nbsp;gun manufacturers and licensed dealers from being held liable for any &lsquo;harm caused by those who criminally or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/joe-biden-renews-push-for-lawsuits-against-gun-makers-he-equates-with-cigarettes-manufacturers\/\" title=\"Joe Biden Renews Push for ...s Against Gun Makers He Equates with Cigarettes Manufacturers\">unlawfully misuse firearm products<\/a> or ammunition products that function as designed and intended.&rsquo;&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-586657843\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>In its original complaint, Mexico alleged that the named U.S. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/kamala-harris-would-be-most-anti-gun-president-in-u-s-history\/\" title=\"Kamala Harris Would Be Most Anti-Gun President In U.S. History\">gun manufacturers&#038;rsquo<\/a>; &ldquo;reckless and unlawful practices&rdquo; help facilitate the illegal smuggling of firearms into the hands of Mexican drug cartels. Mexico City contended these policies caused harm to the country&rsquo;s residents.<\/p>\n<p>As noted by Kagan, however, Mexico&rsquo;s lawsuit &ldquo;does not plausibly allege that the defendant gun manufacturers aided and abetted gun dealers&rsquo; unlawful sales of firearms to Mexican traffickers,&rdquo; and thus, the PLCAA renders the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/judge-blocks-trump-administrations-effort-to-strip-harvards-foreign-student-visas-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Judge blocks Trump administration\u2019s effort to strip Harvard\u2019s foreign student visas - Washington Examiner\">legal challenge moot<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Congress enacted PLCAA to halt lawsuits attempting to make gun manufacturers pay for harms resulting from the criminal or unlawful misuse of firearms. Mexico&rsquo;s suit closely resembles those lawsuits,&rdquo; Kagan wrote. &ldquo;And while the predicate exception allows some such suits to proceed, accepting Mexico&rsquo;s theory would swallow most of the rule. The Court doubts Congress intended to draft such a capacious way out of PLCAA, and in fact it did not.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>While joining with the majority, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas also authored a concurring opinion in the case. The George H.W. Bush appointee agreed with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/scotus-overturns-chevron-doctrine-upends-administrative-state\/\" title=\"SCOTUS Overturns Chevron Doctrine, Upends Administrative State\">high court&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s ruling on the matter, but advised, &ldquo;In future cases, courts should more fully examine the meaning of &lsquo;violation&rsquo; under the PLCAA.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It seems to me that the PLCAA at least arguably requires not only a plausible <em>allegation<\/em> that a defendant has committed a predicate violation, but also an earlier <em>finding<\/em> of guilt or liability in an adjudication regarding the &lsquo;violation.&rsquo; Allowing plaintiffs to proffer mere allegations of a predicate violation would force many defendants in PLCAA litigation to litigate their criminal guilt in a civil proceeding, without the full panoply of protections that we otherwise afford to criminal defendants,&rdquo; Thomas wrote. &ldquo;And, these defendants might even include ones who were cleared in an earlier proceeding, such as through a noncharging decision or a not-guilty or not -liable verdict. Such collateral adjudication would be at best highly unusual, and would likely raise serious constitutional questions that would counsel in favor of a narrower interpretation.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Particularly given the PLCAA&rsquo;s aim of protecting gun manufacturers from litigation &hellip; this issue warrants careful consideration,&rdquo; he added. <\/p>\n<p>Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who similarly sided with the majority, also authored a concurring opinion in the case &ldquo;to explain that, in [her] view, the complaint&rsquo;s core flaw is its failure to allege any nonconclusory statutory violations in the first place.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Supreme Court&rsquo;s decision reverses the 1st Court of Appeals&rsquo; ruling in favor of Mexico and &ldquo;remand[s] the case for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Shawn Fleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShawnFleetwood\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@ShawnFleetwood<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/shawnfleetwood\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/clarence-thomas\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Clarence Thomas<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/elena-kagan\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Elena Kagan<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/gun-manufacturers\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">gun manufacturers<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/guns-2\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">guns<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/ketanji-brown-jackson\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Ketanji Brown Jackson<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/lawsuit\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Lawsuit<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/mexico\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Mexico<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/protection-of-lawful-commerce-in-arms-act\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/scotus\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">SCOTUS<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/supreme-court\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Supreme Court<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed Mexico&#8217;s lawsuit against U.S. gun manufacturers, stating it was barred by the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2443342,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Gun.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[45715,4585,5370,6994,32275],"class_list":["post-2443341","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-gun-manufacturers","tag-lawsuit","tag-mexico","tag-scotus","tag-supreme-court"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Gun.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2443341","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2443341"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2443341\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2443345,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2443341\/revisions\/2443345"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2443342"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2443341"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2443341"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2443341"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}