National Rifle Association of America, Inc. v. Reno

216 F.3d 122 (2000)

From our private database of 46,400+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

National Rifle Association of America, Inc. v. Reno

United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
216 F.3d 122 (2000)

Facts

The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993 (the Brady Act) authorized the United States Justice Department to create a national system for running background checks on prospective gun buyers. The result, known as the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), included searches for various kinds of criminal records and was operated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The Brady Act required the destruction of personal data relating to lawful gun transactions, but it did not require that destruction to be immediate. The Justice Department of Attorney General Janet Reno (defendant) adopted a regulation under which the FBI was required to retain NICS data for a period of six months for quality-control purposes. The National Rifle Association of America, Inc. (the NRA) (plaintiff) challenged this regulation, arguing that the Brady Act (1) required immediate destruction of the personal data; (2) prohibited the government from requiring that NICS records be recorded at or transferred to a government facility; and (3) prohibited the government from using the NICS to establish a system for the registration of firearms, firearm owners, or firearm transactions. The federal district court found in favor of Reno. The NRA appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Tatel, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 832,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,400 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,400 briefs - keyed to 994 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership