Global Action on Gun Violence/GAGV’s work with Mexico

GAGV’s work with Mexico

Stopping gun violence in Mexico

To stop gun violence in the United States and around the world, GAGV is proud to represent the Government of Mexico, which has been at the forefront of this fight internationally. While Mexico has strong gun laws, because of weak U.S. gun laws and reckless U.S. gun industry practices, thousands of guns flood across the southern border every year. Those guns arm the cartels who use them to engage in violence, intimidation, drug trafficking, and other crimes. In fact, 70 – 90% of crime guns in Mexico have been found to have been trafficked from the United States.  

The violence from these U.S. guns not only cause tremendous harm in Mexico but cause migration and facilitate the fentanyl trade to the United States. Together, we are taking action to stem gun trafficking from the United States. These are some of the initiatives that we have undertaken: 

U.S. LITIGATION

Mexico v. Smith & Wesson, et al.

On August 4, 2021, the Government of Mexico filed the first lawsuit by a sovereign country against the gun industry. This landmark case sought to hold U.S. gun manufacturers liable for the high levels of gun violence in Mexico caused by firearms trafficked from the United States. The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts.  

After winning a unanimous landmark ruling in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, which allowed Mexico’s claims, the Supreme Court of the United States ultimately reversed and held that the case was barred by the federal gun industry shield law, the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (“PLCAA”).  

However, the case has garnered global attention at the United Nations, Organization of American States, and other international conferences and forum. The lawsuit has helped educate leaders and people throughout the world about the problem of gun trafficking and the need to stop the crime gun pipeline at its source – the gun industry. 

On June 5, 2025, the Supreme Court of the United States announced its first decision ever on gun industry liability. In a 9-0 decision authored by Justice Kagan, the Court held that under the Government of Mexico’s allegations against Smith & Wesson, et al., the Court could not find that the gun manufacturer defendants aided and abetted violations of federal firearms laws, and therefore the case was barred by the federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA).  

Notably, the Court did not address or accept the defendants’ arguments that they could not be the proximate cause of any injuries suffered by Mexico as a result of gun industry-driven gun trafficking and violence. While the decision resulted in the end of Mexico’s lawsuit against gun manufacturers, it was narrow and did not affect Mexico’s ongoing lawsuit against five firearms dealers (Estados Unidos Mexicanos v. Diamondback) or preclude future litigation.  

In the lawsuit, Mexico sought to hold American gun manufacturers accountable for their role in facilitating gun trafficking, for refusing to take steps that would stop trafficking, and for marketing assault weapons, sniper rifles, and other guns sought after by the cartels in that country.  

GAGV founder and president Jonathan Lowy helped Mexico develop its legal strategy for this case and is co-counsel. 

The lawsuit opened a multi-faceted strategy for stopping the crime gun pipeline from the U.S. to Mexico, including by holding gun manufacturers accountable for their role in facilitating illegal gun trafficking to Mexico and the resulting surge in gun violence. The lawsuit underlines the global impact of U.S. gun industry practices, setting a precedent for international accountability in the arms trade. 

Court filings in Mexico v. Smith & Wesson

Amicus briefs filed in support of Mexico

Amicus briefs filed in support of the gun companies

Court decisions 

On September 30, 2022, Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV dismissed the case, holding that it was barred by the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), which gives the gun industry unprecedented immunity from civil liability in the United States. 

Mexico appealed that decision, arguing that PLCAA does not apply to lawsuits brought by foreign governments or non-U.S. citizens and that PLCAA does not protect gun companies that knowingly facilitate criminal activity. Oral arguments in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit took place on July 24, 2023. 

On January 22, 2024, the First Circuit ruled in Mexico’s favor, allowing the case to proceed. In its decision, the Court stated that Mexico made a strong enough case that the gun companies engaged in illegal activity not protected by PLCAA. 

Smith and Wesson and the other defendants appealed the First Circuit decision to the Supreme Court of the United States, and oral arguments were heard on March 4, 2025. 

On June 5, 2025, the Supreme Court reversed, holding that Mexico’s complaint, as drafted, did not establish that the gun manufacturer defendants aided and abetted illegal gun sales, and therefore the lawsuit was prohibited by PLCAA. 

Read a detailed analysis of the Supreme Court’s decision.

Mexico v. Diamondback Shooting Sports, et al.

On October 10, 2022, the Government of Mexico filed a second lawsuit – this one against five gun dealers in Arizona. The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Arizona.  

The case is the first lawsuit to use the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act against the gun industry. 

GAGV’s Jonathan Lowy is co-counsel in this case. 

The complaint 

In February 2024, the U.S. District Court in Tucson, AZ, held the first hearing in the case. In March, Judge Rosemary Márquez ruled that the lawsuit could proceed. It is currently in discovery. 

CLAIMS UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW

Mexico has elevated the issue of gun violence prevention in international forums, such as the Organization of American States and the United Nations, asking those organizations to consider gun industry practices and policies that facilitate gun trafficking as violations of international law. GAGV is often invited to speak to member states on the culpability of the gun industry and steps that both gun companies and U.S. lawmakers should take to stop trafficking.  

  • October 25, 2022: GAGV testified before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) at a hearing requested by Mexico on “Respecting and enforcing human rights in the face of the activities of arms manufacturing and trading firms in the Americas.” 
  • November 3, 2022: GAGV was a panelist at a two-day conference in Mexico City co-sponsored by the Mexican government on “The Business of Lethality: Arms Trafficking to Mexico.”  
  • December 19, 2022: Following up on our October testimony, GAGV submitted a report to the IACHR, describing in greater detail how U.S. gun policy and gun industry practices fuel violence in Mexico and other countries and recommending actions that OAS member states can take to address gun trafficking.
  • February 22, 2023: Mexico held a discussion at which GAGV was a panelist on “Illicit Arms Trafficking in Latin America and the Caribbean” in Mexico City.

  • May 1, 2023: GAGV participated in a forum on “Transnational Litigation and Corporate Accountability: Mexico’s Case Against Arms Traffickers in the U.S.” sponsored by the Government of Mexico and the University of Arizona. 

  • May 31, 2023: GAGV testified before the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States on the “Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and the Role of Arms Companies.”

  • August 21, 2023: GAGV submitted a brief to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights of the Organization of American States, in support of the Government of Mexico’s request for an advisory opinion on firearms issues.