Barone Defense Firm Now Offering Gun Trusts

Barone Defense Firm Now Offering Gun Trusts

As Second Amendment advocates, the Barone Defense Firm offers gun trusts to the firearms owners in Michigan. Michigan has a long history of gun and hunting culture. To continue meeting the needs of firearms owners in Michigan, the Barone Defense Firm helps people create a document that ensures that appointed individuals can use firearms during and after the lifetime of the trust creator.

What is a gun trust?

A gun trust is a document that allows you to designate others to legally possess your firearms while living and to distribute your firearms to beneficiaries upon your passing.

What kinds of firearms go into a gun trust?

Most people use gun trusts to transfer ownership of firearms regulated by Title 2 of the National Firearms Act (NFA). These firearms include (1) shotguns with barrels less than 18 inches, (2) a shotgun that has been changed to make it less than 26 inches or the barrel less than 18 inches, (3) a rifle less than 18 inches long, (4) a rifle that has been changed to make it less than 26 inches or the barrel less than 18 inches, (5) a machine gun, (6) any silencer, (7) a destructive device (i.e. explosive device).

Although gun trusts are most commonly used to transfer ownership of these NFA firearms, any other firearm, like one or more semi automatic pistols, can be put into a gun trust.  Upon your death, these firearms then pass according to your wishes, and do so while avoiding probate.

What are the advantages of a gun trust?

There are several advantages of using a gun trust:

  1. Ease of use of the firearm for more than one person. Typically, NFA firearms can be used by the registered owner and no one else. The gun trust allows you to designate multiple people to use the firearm. For example, if you would like to allow your son to take your fully automatic weapon to the range, they could do so if listed as a trustee on the gun trust and provided the son is otherwise able to lawfully possess firearms.
  2. Proper and private distribution of your firearms upon death. Without a gun trust, a family member may come into possession of a firearm at your passing even though they are not legally able to possess the firearm. This can result in felony charges. Additionally, the gun trust tells your loved ones who gets what when your estate is distributed (just like a trust for any other property).
  3. Gun trusts protect your privacy. Many of our firearms clients are concerned about the privacy of their firearms. And rightfully so! If you do not have a gun trust, a record of your firearms, their location, and value may be accessible to the public if they go through probate. A gun trust will prevent this information from going through probate and keep it private.
  4. Legal ownership if you become incapacitated. If you or your trustee becomes incapacitated, you can direct who should receive possession of your firearms during incapacitation.

Keep in mind that all appointees- trustees and beneficiaries- should be legally able to possess firearms. This means that they should not have been convicted of a felony or domestic violence.

If you are interested in a gun trusts, the attorneys at the Barone Defense Firm would like to help you. Obtaining a gun trust today could save you and your loved ones huge headaches in the future.

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