DOJ Looks to Settle Lawsuit Challenging Ban on Handgun Sales to Young Adults

The recent opinion from the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel finding the federal ban on handgun sales to adults younger than 21 unconstitutional appears to be having a positive effect on a lawsuit challenging the statute in question. 

Earlier this year a federal judge in Louisiana held that the law is unconstitutional and granted an injunction against enforcement, but only within the Fifth Circuit and only for individuals who were members of Firearms Policy Coalition, Second Amendment Foundation, and Louisiana Shooting Sports Association at the time the lawsuit was filed. 

The plaintiffs appealed the scope of the injunction to the Fifth Circuit, while the DOJ sought to appeal the judge’s ruling altogether. Since then, though, DOJ has sought and received two extensions on the deadline to file their appeal. The most recent deadline was Monday, and as the Firearms Policy Coalition announced on X, DOJ once more asked for and was granted another extension. This time, though, the agency offered a new reason for the delay. 

ICYMI:

Last week, the OLC issued guidance on enforcing the 18-20 Federal Handgun Purchase Ban and immediately requested an extension on the brief due in court today.

That request has been granted.

We will keep you updated as things progress. pic.twitter.com/fqLLggctBY

— Firearms Policy Coalition (@gunpolicy) September 21, 2026

So, instead of asking for more time because the DOJ attorneys had other deadlines to meet in other cases, the Justice Department is now asking for a delay “to enable the parties to discuss a negotiated resolution” to the case. 

I was wondering how the OLC opinion would impact FPC v. ATF, and now we know the answer. The DOJ clearly doesn’t want to mount an appeal, which is understandable given that its own in-house counsel has said the statute in question violates the Second Amendment. Now the question is what kind of negotiated settlement are we looking at? 

The plaintiffs were seeking as broad an injunction as possible; one that would apply to all current and future members of the organizations, regardless of where they live. Now that the OLC has determined the federal prohibition on retail handgun sales to adults younger than 21 is a facial violation of our Second Amendment rights, I can’t imagine that DOJ would object to what the plaintiffs were asking for.  

Could FPC, SAF, and LSSA ask for an even more expansive injunction than what they’ve been seeking? I suppose so, but the courts are still bound by the CASA decision, which essentially takes a universal injunction off the table. It’s up to the ATF, not a panel of judges, to write a rule that would cover every handgun sale to under-21s. 

We haven’t seen any formal announcement from ATF Director Robert Cekada to that effect, but I know it will be a topic of conversation when he appears at Gun Rights Policy Conference this weekend. 

Rulemaking takes time, so we’re still months away from any final rule taking effect. An agreement between DOJ and the plaintiffs in FPC v. ATF that covers as many people as possible, though, could allow at least some sales to take place even while the final rule is being formalized. 

We’ve already seen that play out with the Jensen/Silencer Shop litigation, at least to some degree. Plaintiffs like Silencer Shop and Palmetto State Armory have been selling suppressors like they’re ordinary firearms, with some buyers going through a NICS check but able to avoid filling out a Form 4 and getting ATF approval. 

As of now, the OLC opinion hasn’t resulted in any changes on the ground for young adults wanting to purchase handguns at retail, but based on DOJ’s latest filing in FPC v. ATF, things are at least moving in the right direction. 

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