Yesterday, I posted about the North Texas ruling that deems parts of the NFA unconstitutional. The DOJ did not challenge the ruling, which is now in effect. Wiley.law has a pdf of the ruling if you want to read all 66 pages.
Quick Background
Since 1934, certain classes of firearms and firearm accessories, including suppressors, short barrel rifles, and short barrel shotguns, have required onerous paperwork and a $200 tax. Congress instituted the law using its power as a taxing authority, with the goal of limiting access to these firearms.
Prior to 2025, a purchaser would have to complete the purchase at their friendly FFL, including submitting a 4473, and then wait months for the AFT to allow the sale to complete. With last year’s Big Beautiful Bill, the $200 tax was eliminated, but the paperwork requirement remained. Starting in 2026, the ATF instituted a new digital paperwork framework that sped things up, but the plaintiffs below felt that was too much. With the tax eliminated, Congress’s need for the paperwork seems unconstitutional.
Judge Hendrix, ruled last week that it agreed with the plaintiffs, the need for paperwork is unconstitutional, and gave the DOJ until yesterday (August 12, 2026) to file an appeal, which they let lapse.
What Happens Now?
If you are Silencer Shop, Brandon Herrera, and Gun Owners of America, you complete a historic transfer at midnight, selling Brandon two supressors without any NFA paperwork.
In the final ruling, Judge Hendrix states “The plaintiffs in both cases are entitled to a permanent injunction barring enforcement of the challenged NFA provisions against them, their members, and their customers. But that is as far as it goes. Federal courts lack power to issue universal injunctions that provide relief to parties not before the Court.” What this means is that this ruling applies to the parties involved with the two cases only.
The following parties are included: Brady Wetz, Silencer Shop Foundation
B&T USA, LLC, Palmetto State Armory, LLC, SilencerCo
Weapons Research, LLC, Gun Owners of America, Inc., Firearms Regulatory Accountability Coalition, Inc., Gun Owners Foundation, Texas, Alaska, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Montana, North
Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming agencies and employees, John Jensen, Jeremy Neusch, David Lynn Smith, Hot Shots Custom, LLC, Texas State Rifle Association, FPC Action Foundation, and Citizens Committee For The Right To Keep
And Bear Arms.
What to actually do right now
If you’ve been sitting on a Form 4 for a suppressor, waiting it out is not a bad plan right now.
A few concrete things worth doing this week instead of guessing:
- Don’t cancel or delay a pending Form 1 or Form 4 based on this ruling alone. A pending application isn’t going to hurt you. You’ve already submitted the paperwork, they already have your information.
- Check whether you or your business are covered. The injunction protects the parties above. For the organizations, it includes current and future members. What this means is you should consider joining one of the organizations, but do your homework first.
Where can I actually make a no paperwork purchase?
This is unclear. Its going to take some time for FFL dealers to figure out what this really means for them. You are probably safe making the drive to Leander, TX to purchase at Silencer Shop’s physical store.
By the way, this does not eliminate the need for filling out a 4473.
What about the rest of us?
Since the DOJ did not chose to appeal the ruling, the rest of us are stuck. A Federal District court does not have the authority to make a nationwide ruling, and by not appealing the case, it will not make it to the Supreme Court.
Train hard. Train smart. Train safe.
AI assisted research and editing. Human verified and finalized.
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