No. 19-296October Term 2019Decided Mar 2, 2020Updated Sep 3, 2026
Guedes v. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
The Supreme Court declined to hear Guedes, leaving the lower court's result in place without resolving the legal questions.
Case status
Decided · March 2, 2020
Read the opinion (PDF)- Current stage
- Decided
- Latest event
- Decision released Mar 2, 2020
- What it's about
This case challenges the ATF’s rule treating bump stocks as machineguns under federal law, which effectively bans them. The petition asks how courts should interpret a criminal statute that also governs agency regulation, including whether courts should defer to the ATF’s reading of the law.
Question presented
Whether the court of appeals correctly denied a preliminary injunction where petitioners failed to demonstrate a likelihood of success on their contention that devices known as bump stocks, which permit users to fire a semiautomatic rifle repeatedly with a single pull of the trigger, do not qualify as “machinegun[s]” under the National Firearms Act, 26 U.S.C. 5845(b).
- Case path
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit / Decision released Mar 2, 2020
- Area
Administrative Law, Gun Rights
Decision
What the Court decided
The Supreme Court declined to hear Guedes, leaving the lower court's result in place without resolving the legal questions.
Impact
The ATF rule effectively bans bump stocks. Gun owners who possess or want to use these devices remain affected by the rule.
Not official Court text.
Opinion documents
Briefing
What it's about
The Court declined review of a challenge to the ATF rule treating bump stocks as machineguns and did not decide the merits. The lower court's refusal to block the rule while the case proceeded remained in place.
Impact
The ATF rule effectively bans bump stocks. Gun owners who possess or want to use these devices remain affected by the rule.
What's next
The Supreme Court has finished its action in this docket. The ATF bump-stock rule remains in effect under the lower court result.
What did the Supreme Court rule in Guedes v. ATF?
The Court declined review and did not decide whether the ATF correctly classified bump stocks as machineguns.
Who is affected by the bump-stock rule in Guedes?
Gun owners who possess or seek to use bump stocks are affected because the ATF rule effectively bans the devices.
What happens next in Guedes v. ATF?
The Supreme Court's docket action is finished. The lower court result and the ATF rule remain in place.
Timing
Decided March 2, 2020
The Court released its decision on March 2, 2020 without hearing oral argument.
Documents
Activity
Docket activity3
AI analysis generated: Case Briefing
Sep 3, 2026 | Generated
Opinion added: Opinion
Mar 2, 2020 | Court records
Brief added: Petition
Aug 29, 2019 | Court records
Related cases
Grounding
- Grounding
- Primary materials plus reporting.
- Note
- Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.
- Checked
- Sep 3, 2026
- Method
- Methodology