New York State Rifle &
Pistol Association v. Corlett,
The Black Attorneys Legal Aid Brief

Described as the first significant Second Amendment case to be heard in a decade, New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Corlett, has, as expected, engendered a large number of amicus briefs.

Amicus (friend of the court) briefs are submitted by parties who wish to bring facts and arguments before the court, which might not otherwise be noticed by the court.

This is an important function. It has the potential to prevent absurdities such as happened in the first direct challenge to a federal law using the Second Amendment, U.S. v. Miller, 1939. That case challenged the National Firearms Act of 1934. It was sent back to the District Court, in part, because the Court ruled no one had presented evidence that short-barreled shotguns were useful to a militia.

In the New York case, 52 amicus briefs have been accepted by the Supreme Court. Amicus briefs are required to be submitted in a rigid format, with strict printing requirements, on a fixed timeline. This author was contacted to contribute to one of the amicus briefs. Unfortunately, events prevented such a contribution.

What appears to be the last amicus brief accepted was from the Black Attorneys of Legal Aid of New York City.

As with most amicus briefs accepted by the Supreme Court, it is well written and argued. The bar for acceptance is high. .....