Firearms Transfers

What happens if you’re the executor of an estate and the person who passed away owned a gun?  On one hand, the firearm is just another estate asset to be distributed or disposed of under the terms of the will.  On the other hand, there are very specific legal rules about who can own a gun and how you go about selling or transferring a firearm.  Before you do anything with the gun, you need to think about your duties as the executor of the estate as well the legal requirements under the firearm transfer laws.

As executor, you have a fiduciary duty to manage estate assets.  As a general rule, you have three options for each estate asset.  First, you can distribute it to a beneficiary under the will.  Second, you can sell the asset and distribute the cash to the beneficiaries, or third, you can dispose of the asset if it has little or no value and none of the beneficiaries want it.

When that estate asset is a gun, any transfers (whether you are distributing the gun to a beneficiary or selling it) should go through a licensed firearms dealer.  In most instances, any transfer of a firearm must go through a dealer (there is an exception for a gift of a firearm between family members, but the gift must occur during the owner’s lifetime – not in his or her will).

As part of transfer process, the dealer will conduct a background check on the purchaser/transferee.  Along with being a legal requirement, this background check is a very important protection for you as the executor.  Delivering a firearm to anyone you have “reasonable cause to believe” is ineligible to possess a firearm is a class C felony (the criteria for being ineligible to possess a firearm is set out in RCW 9.41.040).  The background check should disclose any reasons that the transferee should not receive the firearm.

That covers both distributing a firearm to a beneficiary or selling it, but what do you do if you simply need to get rid of a gun?  You may discover a gun that you think could be in a dangerous condition, that appears to be worth little or nothing, that you suspect might have been stolen, or that might even be illegal (such as a sawed-off shotgun).

If you’re unsure about the gun’s value or its condition, you should contact a firearms dealer.  The dealer can assess the value of gun.  In addition, many dealerships provide gunsmithing services and can determine if the gun is safe to use.

If your concern is that the gun might be stolen or illegally modified, contact your local law enforcement agency.  They can check the gun’s serial number to see if it’s been stolen in the past and can advise you about the legality of the gun.  If the gun is either stolen or illegal, the agency will have to keep the gun.  In addition, many agencies will take unwanted guns.

Having a gun in an estate does complicate your job as an executor but working with local law enforcement and a licensed firearms dealer can ensure that you satisfy your fiduciary duty while complying with the law.