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General Category => National/Breaking News => SCOTUS News => Topic started by: Elderberry on June 08, 2019, 05:33:35 pm

Title: Supreme Court Should Hear the Remington Appeal in the PLCAA case
Post by: Elderberry on June 08, 2019, 05:33:35 pm
Ammoland by Dean Weingarten 6/7/2019

The Supreme Court should agree to hear the appeal of Remington against the Connecticut Supreme Court in their PLCAA decision.

The Connecticut Supreme Court, in a narrow 4-3 decision, ruled a civil case against Remington could go forward in spite of protections by the Protection of Legal Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) .

On May 3rd, 2019, the Connecticut Supreme Court granted a stay to the defendants while they appealed the case to the Supreme Court.

Congress explicitly forbid such lawsuits with the Protection of Legal Commerce in Arms Act .

The four judges in the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled the case could fall under the vague and broad Connecticut  Unfair Trade Practices Act (CUTPA).  The allegation is Remington violated CUTPA by marketing their rifles as being effective in combat, and the marketing was aimed at young people. The claim is the marketing promotes illegal activity. CUTPA forbids marketing that promotes illegal activity.

Such an advertisement only promotes illegal action if you believe militia use of such a firearm is illegal; if you believe training for military use should be illegal; if you believe being armed against tyranny should be illegal.

Unfortunately, a jury in Connecticut might be found which believes these things.

The Connecticut Supreme Court ruled Remington might have violated CUTPA, therefore the lawsuit could proceed on the theory if fit under one of the exceptions to the PLCAA. The exception is: if a firearms seller violated the law when the firearm was sold, they may be sued.

This is an example of the tyranny of multitudinous laws. Because there are so many laws, and because so many of them are broad and vague, it is near certainty that everyone has violated a law at some time.

Remington was never charged under CUTPA, and would likely prevail in court.

Remington would probably win the lawsuit filed against it, but it cannot be guaranteed. Even if Remington won, it would have expended a fortune in legal fees, in providing discovery material, and suffered considerable loss in reputation by being constantly attacked in the Media.

It is exactly this sort of excess the PLCAA was designed to prevent. Here are the purposes of the PLCAA as written in the act:

More: https://www.ammoland.com/2019/06/supreme-court-should-hear-the-remington-appeal-in-the-plcaa-case/ (https://www.ammoland.com/2019/06/supreme-court-should-hear-the-remington-appeal-in-the-plcaa-case/)