The Landskind & Ricaforte Law Group, P.C. Could Help You Preserve Your 2nd Amendment Rights in NYC
Most everyone who’s ever bought, sold, or transferred a firearm within New York City knows and understands their Second Amendment rights. However, even if you have no doubts about your standing as a responsible gun owner, your right to bear arms may not be compatible with the terms of your estate plan. 
In New York, a tough combination of federal code and local law can make leaving a gun collection to the next generation difficult to an unusual degree. If you don’t take the right precautions before you die, your executor could be forced to forfeit your firearms to law enforcement—leaving your heirs to scramble for permits and licenses and possibly risking the loss of your legacy.
You don’t have to accept uncertainty in place of an effective solution. Our skilled estate planning attorneys at Landskind & Ricaforte Law Group, P.C. can help you establish a gun trust, so your beneficiaries can enjoy uninterrupted access to your collection without the headaches of inheriting firearms in New York City.
An Overview of New York City Gun Trusts
A “gun trust” is a special category of trust that can be used to condition the control of firearms.
Similar to most other types of trusts, a gun trust can be revocable or irrevocable. However, unlike a typical living trust, a gun trust is configured to reflect the specific needs of its grantor. Most people who found and fund gun trusts wish to either:
- Ensure that their beneficiaries can legally access weapons regulated by the National Firearms Act (NFA) or the Gun Control Act of 1968
- Eliminate barriers to the inheritance of other firearms, including standard semiautomatic rifles, handguns, shotguns, and antique or antique-replica firearms
Trusts Give You Intergenerational Control Over NFA Firearms
Although the Second Amendment guarantees every American a basic right to bear arms, different levels of government—from City Hall to Capitol Hill—retain a limited authority to place restrictions on the purchase and ownership of firearms.
At the federal level, these limitations include those imposed by:
- The National Firearms Act, which imposes a tax upon and requires registration for certain types of firearms. Weapons subject to the NFA include short-barreled shotguns, short-barreled rifles, and fully automatic firearms. Some firearm accessories, like silencers, are also regulated by the NFA.
- The Gun Control Act of 1968, which prohibits felons, “habitual” drug users, and people adjudicated mentally incompetent from purchasing and possessing firearms.
Since gun trusts can apply for and receive the ATF stamp necessary to own and control NFA-restricted firearms, gun trusts are sometimes referred to as “NFA trusts” or “NFA gun trusts.”
Almost every gun trust—regardless of whether it possesses NFA weapons—can receive other types of firearms. Beneficiaries who are not “prohibited persons” under the Gun Control Act of 1968 or Section 265 of the New York Penal Code can typically access and use any trust-owned firearms, even if the firearm is an NFA firearm.
Why Trusts Can Make Sense Even if You Don’t Have an ATF Stamp
You don’t need to have an ATF stamp or own an arsenal of NFA-regulated firearms to benefit from a gun trust. Establishing a trust might make strategic sense if:
- You own valuable firearms of any type and have beneficiaries who live in New York City or New York State.
- You want your loved ones to benefit from your collection but don’t want to risk a less-than-sentimental heir selling a rifle you worked hard to buy, maintain, or restore.
- You do not want your friends or family to have to go to the police station or rush through license applications while still grieving your loss.
- Your estate is vulnerable to creditor claims, and you aren’t willing to risk your firearm collection in probate.
Certain types of gun trusts also give you the option of setting conditions on how your firearms are used, maintained, and stored.
Establishing a Gun Trust: What to Consider Before You Get Started
Trusts are inherently flexible tools that afford their grantors substantial leeway in terms of both structure and complexity. However, even if every trust is different, these arrangements are only honored when they’re drafted in accordance with local, state, and federal law—a significant challenge that almost always requires an attorney’s input.
An experienced New York City gun trust lawyer could help you work through considerations that include, but are not limited to, the following:
- How to construct a trust agreement that is fully compliant with relevant rules at different levels of government
- How to create a revocable trust that gives you exclusive rights to your entire collection for the remainder of your lifetime
- What resources and assets you can use to provide your trust with a long-term source of funding
- The best way to select a successor trustee and how to avoid misunderstandings in administration by eliminating ambiguity in your charter
The Landskind & Ricaforte Law Group, P.C. has spent years helping New York families cement their legacies by identifying and implementing novel solutions—solutions that benefit you now and are built to last longer than a lifetime. We can help you establish a gun trust that works for your unique situation and family needs.