A gun rights group is urging the Supreme Court to take up a case that could strike down laws barring people between the ages of 18 and 20 from obtaining handgun permits, citing a growing split among federal appeals courts on the issue.
The case, Worth v. Jacobson, challenges Minnesota’s law imposing handgun age limits. In July, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit unanimously ruled the restriction unconstitutional, arguing it lacked historical precedent and violated the Second Amendment.
Now, the Firearms Policy Coalition and its allies are asking the Supreme Court to affirm that decision and set a nationwide precedent. “Whether the government may prevent peaceable 18-to-20-year-old Americans from acquiring or carrying firearms is a question of fundamental importance,” FPC stated in its Supreme Court brief.
The 8th Circuit’s ruling marked a significant victory for gun rights advocates. In its decision, Judge Duane Benton, an appointee of former President George W. Bush, emphasized that the Second Amendment’s plain text “does not have an age limit.” The court found that Minnesota failed to show historical support for restricting gun rights based on age, citing Supreme Court rulings in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen (2022) and United States v. Rahimi (2024).
The appeals court’s decision cleared the way for young adults in Minnesota to obtain carry permits, reversing a 2023 federal district court decision that had initially found the law unconstitutional but allowed it to remain in effect pending appeal. Gun advocacy groups like FPC brought the lawsuit on behalf of three individuals between the ages of 18 and 20 against the Minnesota public safety commissioner in 2021.
This case is part of a broader legal battle over gun laws for young adults. In January, the 5th Circuit struck down federal handgun purchase restrictions for those under 21, while the 3rd and 10th Circuits upheld similar laws in Pennsylvania and Colorado. Other appeals courts, including the 4th, 9th, and 11th Circuits, have also been asked to review age-based firearm restrictions.
Gun control advocates argue that such rulings undermine state efforts to regulate firearm access among young adults. According to the Giffords Law Center, while federal law sets minimum age requirements for licensed gun dealers, 18 for long guns and 21 for handguns, it does not regulate private firearm sales to minors. Several states, including Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, and New York, have imposed stricter age limits on handgun possession than federal law, with the goal of curbing gun violence among young adults.
FPC argues the Supreme Court must resolve the legal uncertainty and reaffirm gun rights for all adults. If the justices take up the case, it could reshape age-based handgun laws nationwide.
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“While the court below correctly held that Minnesota’s age restriction on carrying firearms is unconstitutional, [Minnesota] is correct that the federal courts of appeal have divided over the constitutionality of such laws,” FPC stated in its Supreme Court brief. “Whether the government may prevent peaceable 18-to-20-year-old Americans from acquiring or carrying firearms is a question of fundamental importance, and Respondents agree that it merits this Court’s review.”
The Supreme Court has already begun granting some cases for its next 2025-26 term that begins in the fall. If the justices take this case, arguments would be held sometime between this fall or spring next year.
