BELLEVUE, Wash. — The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) has filed an amicus brief with the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Yukutake v. Lopez, a case challenging Hawaii’s restrictive firearm purchase laws.
Backgrounder: Yukutake v. Lopez
The case of Yukutake v. Lopez comes out of Hawaii, one of the most restrictive states in the nation when it comes to firearm ownership. Two gun owners, backed by Second Amendment advocates, challenged Hawaii’s unusual handgun purchase laws:
- 30-Day Purchase Limit – State law required a handgun permit to expire after just 10 days (later stretched to 30), meaning if you didn’t finalize the sale within that window, you had to start the whole process over again.
- Five-Day Police Inspection – After buying a gun, owners were forced to physically bring it to the police station within five days for “inspection,” even if it came from a federally licensed dealer.
A federal district court struck down both rules, calling them unconstitutional burdens on the right to keep and bear arms. In March 2025, a Ninth Circuit panel agreed, citing the Supreme Court’s Bruen decision and finding no historical tradition for Hawaii’s mandates.
But in July 2025, the Ninth Circuit took the rare step of vacating that win and ordering a rehearing by the full court (en banc). That means the fight isn’t over.
The Second Amendment Foundation and other groups are urging the court to uphold the earlier ruling, arguing that Hawaii’s laws are outliers with no roots in America’s firearm traditions.
At its heart, Yukutake v. Lopez asks a simple but powerful question: Can a state invent arbitrary deadlines and inspection rules that effectively ration the exercise of a constitutional right?
While the Plaintiffs prevailed before a Ninth Circuit three-judge panel, the case is now being reheard en banc. SAF is joined by the California Rifle & Pistol Association and the Second Amendment Law Center.
“Our brief contends that the Ninth Circuit’s practice of routinely granting en banc rehearing to overturn Second Amendment victories undermines public confidence in the judicial system,” said SAF Director of Legal Research and Education Kostas Moros. “We also argue that the court should reverse its erroneous interest-balancing standard set in B&L Productions, Inc. v. Newsom, which improperly revives a test rejected by the Supreme Court in Bruen. Hawaii’s laws clearly implicate the plain text of the Second Amendment, and without a historical basis, they cannot stand.”
The amicus brief argues that Hawaii statutes, which impose a 30-day time limit to purchase a firearm after receiving a permit and require police inspection of legally purchased firearms within five days, violate the Second Amendment. These laws lack any historical tradition of support and place undue burdens on law-abiding citizens exercising their constitutional rights. The brief is also critical of the Ninth Circuit’s now routine practice of rehearing almost all Second Amendment victories en banc only to reverse the decisions.
“This amicus brief is part of SAF’s ongoing mission to defend, secure and restore the Second Amendment rights of Hawaii residents,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “These arbitrary restrictions in Hawaii are unique and burdensome with no parallel in other states. We urge the Ninth Circuit to either reinstate the three-judge panel’s ruling striking down these laws or rule in favor of the plaintiffs, ensuring that the Second Amendment is treated with the respect it deserves.”
For more information, or to register, visit SAF.org.
Second Amendment Foundation
The Second Amendment Foundation (saf.org) is the nation’s oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing, and legal action group dedicated to safeguarding and promoting the fundamental rights of individuals enshrined in the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. SAF engages in aggressive legal action to ensure the principles of armed self-defense, personal liberty, and the ownership of arms are defended, secured, and restored. Through public education initiatives, SAF teaches the importance of the Second Amendment to promote a society that values and exercises the right to keep and bear arms.
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The only way all this babble will stop is for the People to use the 2nd Amendment for it’s intended purpose.
HLB
and scotus will pass on this after commies say it is reasonable , like requiring verifiable driving experience to get a learners permit