Recent Firearms Law Works-in-Progress Workshop

For the third year in a row, I was glad to participate in summer Firearms Law Works-in-Progress Workshop this past week. This year, George Mocsary at the University of Wyoming College of Law hosted the workshop at the Cody Firearms Museum, which is housed within the Buffalo Bill Center of the West. There were fascinating papers from scholars with a variety of methodological and subject-matter perspectives. These ranged from articles about how securities regulation can inform firearms regulation to the nature and justification for the right to armed self-defense to the doctrinal implications of categorical exceptions for unprotected guns/gun-related conduct to concerns with broad tort immunity for firearms dealers, and more! These papers demonstrated the breadth of open questions in firearms law, and the wide scope of scholars who can address these questions. Plus, we were able to tour the museum’s enormous collection of antique and modern firearms and had the chance to shoot some special historical firearms—a flintlock musket, a Sharps rifle, a late 19th century lever action .30-30 rifle, and a classic revolver. Below are a few pictures from the event.

(museum at which the workshop was held)

(guided tour of the museum in between paper presentations)

(range time with some historical firearms)