Lee’s note: This is the first contribution from Charles M. Britt, III, a Bradenton, Florida-based attorney and a former law enforcement officer and firearms trainer.

The Benefits of a Gun Trust

by Charles M. Britt, III

An increasing number of gun owners, with help from attorneys, are creating legal trusts to buy silencers, fully-automatic machine guns, or any other items or weapon whose sale is restricted by federal gun law, otherwise known as the National Firearms Act “NFA”— this legal entity subverts the requirement to obtain local law enforcement approval or even undergo criminal background checks. This trust goes around much of the red tape and problems associated with personal ownership of NFA weapons.

These gun trusts allow the owners of the regulated firearms to use and share them legally with family members and to pass them down through the generations. These trust are gaining in number because they offer legal protection from potential future laws which may ban the possession or sale of the firearms.

Specific benefits:

Local Sheriff or Chief Law Enforcement Officer (CLEO) Sign Off Not Required – The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF or BATF) mandate that individuals get the approval of the CLEO of the county where you live does not apply to NFA gun trusts. Many local sheriffs refuse to sign off on the purchase for various reasons which makes buying a NFA weapon almost impossible for an individual. A class 3 NFA trust works around that problem.

Fingerprint Cards Not Required – For an individual, the BATF requires two sets of fingerprint cards to go with Form 4 transfers. This requirement doesn’t apply to a NFA gun trust.

Owner Photograph Not Required – An individual is required to provide a photograph with the application, again doesn’t apply to a gun trust.

Continuity of Ownership – as like most trusts, unless the items in the trust are sold by the trustee, the items belongs to the trust as long as the trust exists. Usually, a trust runs 70 years. A gun trust can set out the division of property just like a will, but the assets remain legally in the trust for generations.

Continuity, Scope, and Mutuality of Class 3 Weapon Possession – A NFA firearm trust can allow various people to possess and use Class 3 weapons owned by the trust. Multiple trustees can be named who have the authority to possess the trust’s assets. Those persons and beneficiaries can be designated at the outset of the trust or added or deleted at a later date. Without a trust, the individual owner, and no one else, can possess or use the Class 3 weapon. There is no requirement to transfer the gun trust assets upon the death or legal incapacity of a trustee or beneficiary. You also avoid the need to file a Form 4 transfer and pay the $200 federal tax.

Confidentiality – The gun trust is not filed with any state or municipal government or other law enforcement entity, except the BATF. If gun trust buys a NFA Class 3 weapon, a copy of the trust itself must be filed with Form 4. But, your trust and your name only show up on the tax rolls of the BATF. Since it is a tax related filing, it is exempt from most subpoenas and public records requests.

No Filing Fees – Since nothing is filed with any government bureaucracy, there are no filing fees to be paid for someone to copy and file it in a government database.

Insurance – As it stands right now, an NFA Class 3 weapons trust is you best protection to buy and later sell or transfer those weapons as assets for generations to come. What laws that may come in the future will probably not affect trust already in existence.

Protection – not from criminals, but from the government. A gun trust can be written to insulate your loved ones in case they accidentally possess an NFA weapon that is not registered to them personally.

Speed of Registration – A properly written NFA gun trust can speed up the registration process significantly and allow you to obtain Class 3 items before new laws take effect.

Background Check Not Required– while most Class 3 dealers do it anyway, there is no requirement of a background check when an NFA gun trust is used.

Bradenton Attorney Charles M. Britt, III can be contacted at (941) 747-4440.