{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.curtis.senate.gov/press-releases/curtis-colleagues-introduce-bill-to-increase-second-amendment-protections-against-frivolous-lawsuits", "Curtis, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Increase Second Amendment Protections Against Frivolous Lawsuits", "2026-06-12", "2026", "2026-06", "Republican", "Senate", "UT", "John R. Curtis", "C001114", "www.curtis.senate.gov", "curtis", "https://www.curtis.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON\u2014U.S. Senator John Curtis (R-UT) joined Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), along with 14 of their Senate Republican colleagues, in introducing the Stopping Harmful and Outrageous Torts (SHOT) Act, which would strengthen the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) to provide enhanced protections to the firearms industry from frivolous lawsuits brought by anti-gun bad actors.\n\n\u201cFor years, bad actors have frivolously litigated the firearms industry in ways that unnecessarily strain our court system and undermine Americans\u2019 Second Amendment rights,\u201d said Senator Curtis. \u201cThe SHOT Act helps ensure that lawful firearms manufacturers and sellers are not held liable for crimes committed by third parties, while closing loopholes and reinforcing existing legal protections.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am a proud supporter of the PLCAA, which protects our firearms industry from the constant onslaught of frivolous attacks by the Radical Left, progressive officials, and rogue activist judges,\u201d said Senator Cornyn. \u201cThis legislation would strengthen the PLCAA to ensure it can continue to defend law-abiding Americans\u2019 Second Amendment rights against anti-gun groups\u2019 evolving tactics, and I urge the Senate to bring it to the floor for a vote as soon as possible.\u201d\n\nThe legislation is also cosponsored by Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Ted Budd (R-NC), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Steve Daines (R-MT), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Jim Risch (R-ID), Tim Sheehy (R-MT), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Jim Justice (R-WV), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), and Bill Cassidy (R-LA). U.S. Representative Derek Schmidt (R-KS) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.\n\n\u201cRadical leftists, Democrat politicians, and rogue judges are eroding our Second Amendment rights by supporting baseless lawsuits against law-abiding gun makers,\u201d said Senator Blackburn. \u201cThe SHOT Act would put a stop to these harmful lawsuits and protect the firearms industry that is vital to upholding our constitutional right to bear arms.\u201d\n\n\u201cFor far too long, radical anti-gun groups have weaponized our courts with meritless lawsuits against America\u2019s firearms industry, aided by activist judges who disregard federal law. I am proud to join Senator John Cornyn in stopping these baseless attacks on our constitutional rights and defending an industry that plays a vital role in our public safety and national security,\u201d said Senator Budd.\n\n\u201cLitigious activists should not be allowed to bankrupt lawful businesses for crimes they did not commit,\u201d said Senator Crapo. \u201cThe SHOT Actwould reinforce Congress\u2019s original intent by strengthening federal protections for members of the firearms industry, stopping meritless lawsuits and preventing costly legal abuse.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Constitution makes it very clear: Americans have the right to keep and bear arms. I\u2019m proud to work with Senator Cornyn and our colleagues on the SHOT Act to protect firearm manufacturers from frivolous lawsuits by anti-gun organizations and protect the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens,\u201d said Senator Daines.\n\n\u201cThe Second Amendment is a fundamental right established by our Founding Fathers. Unfortunately, that hasn\u2019t stopped leftist organizations, special interest groups, and foreign governments from attempting to strip Americans of their right to bear arms, including through baseless litigation intended to bankrupt the firearms industry,\u201d said Senator Grassley. \u201cI\u2019m proud to join my colleagues in introducing the SHOT Act, which will put a stop to these frivolous lawsuits and help protect Americans\u2019 constitutional rights.\u201d\n\n\u201cRadical anti-gun activists\u2019 attempts to strip Idahoans of their Second Amendment rights and bankrupt our firearm industry must stop,\u201d said Senator Risch. \u201cThe SHOT Act will protect our Constitutional right to bear arms by ending frivolous and costly lawsuits.\u201d\n\n\u201cAs radical anti-gun groups continue their attacks on the firearms industry through a deluge of nuisance lawsuits and baseless claims, it\u2019s crucial we clarify and strengthen existing protections for the industry to protect Americans\u2019 Second Amendment rights. That\u2019s why I\u2019m pleased to cosponsor the SHOT Act, which makes key updates to the PLCAA\u2013deterring such meritless litigation and defending our constitutional freedoms,\u201d said Senator Sheehy.\n\n\u201cThe threats against our right to bear arms run far and wide. When radical gun-grabbing activists lose at the ballot box, they turn to the court room with bogus legal claims,\u201d said Senator Graham. \u201cI\u2019m proud to stand with Second Amendment advocates in supporting the SHOT Act, which will shut the door on absurd lawsuits that seek to put gun dealers across South Carolina out of business.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThe PLCAA was passed by Congress 20 years ago to stop frivolous lawsuits brought by anti-gun groups against the firearms industry. These lawsuits, premised solely on the actions of third parties who misuse firearms in a manner beyond the industry\u2019s control, sought to bankrupt the firearms industry. In response, the PLCAA provided the firearms industry with basic immunity protections from suits that many other American industries enjoy.\n\nUnfortunately, anti-gun groups, progressive politicians, plaintiffs\u2019 attorneys, and rogue judges have ignored the plain text of the PLCAA and chipped away at its protections. For example, in Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. v. Estados Unidos Mexicanos, Mexico filed a lawsuit against firearms manufacturers alleging that they caused cartel violence. The District Court judge hearing the case quickly dismissed the suit under the PLCAA, but a panel of liberal judges on the First Circuit ignored the PLCAA\u2019s text and reversed the lower court, necessitating the Supreme Court\u2019s involvement. While a unanimous Supreme Court emphatically dismissed the suit, the suit cost firearms manufacturers an exorbitant amount in legal fees.\n\nThe SHOT Act would address tactics the anti-gun lobby has taken to go after firearms manufacturers and undermine the PLCAA\u2019s protections, along with holdings by rogue judges, by establishing new provisions under the law that would:\n\nDelineate a standardized process for removing and dismissing baseless actions brought against the firearms industry;\n\nRequire complaints premised on an exception to the PLCAA\u2019s protections to be pled with particularity, including providing the facts necessary to establish scienter and proximate cause;\n\nCreate an interlocutory appeal as of right for industry defendants if a motion to dismiss based on the PLCAA\u2019s protections is denied;\n\nGrant a defendant who asserts immunity under the PLCAA and prevails attorneys\u2019 fees and court costs;\n\nClarify that the PLCAA\u2019s protections preempt state or local laws;\n\nMake plain that foreign governments may not bring a qualified civil liability action against a defendant in U.S. federal or state courts;\n\nUpdate the definitions of a \u201cqualified product\u201d to include firearms accessories such as magazines and optical devices;\n\nRevise the definition of a \u201cqualified civil liability action\u201d to make clear that any claim premised on an exception to immunity requires the plaintiff to be directly injured by a defendant, and that nuisance or negligence claims do not qualify as an exception; and\n\nExpand the definition of a \u201cseller\u201d of a qualified product.\n\nThe SHOT Act is endorsed by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF).", 1, "2026-06-13T06:32:19Z", "2026-06-13T06:34:27Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.curtis.senate.gov/press-releases/curtis-colleagues-introduce-bill-to-increase-second-amendment-protections-against-frivolous-lawsuits"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.788145000115037, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}