Sandy Hook suit may force Remington to open books

A recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court has upended a longstanding legal roadblock that has given the gun industry farreaching immunity from lawsuits in the aftermath of mass killings.

The court last week allowed families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook school massacre to sue the maker of the AR15 used in the attack. The case against Remington will now proceed in the Connecticut courts.

Remington is widely expected to win the case, but critics of the gun industry are eyeing what they see as a significant outcome even in the face of defeat: getting the gunmaker to open its books about how it markets firearms.

Lawyers for the plaintiffs are certain to request that Remington turn over volumes of documents as part of the discovery phase, providing a rare window into the innerworkings of how a major gun manufacturer markets its weapons. Those materials might include company emails, memos, business plans and

The court last week allowed families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook school massacre to sue the maker of the AR15 used in the attack. The case against Remington will now proceed in the Connecticut courts.

corporate strategies, or anything that might suggest the company purposely marketed the firearm that may have compelled the shooter to use the weapon to carry out the slaughter.

The plaintiffs also believe the ruling will put gun companies on notice about how they conduct business knowing they could wind up in the courts in similar fashion.

“If the industry wakes up and understands their conduct behind closed doors is not protected, then the industry itself … will take steps to try to help the massive problem we have

Keith Srakocic / Associated Press The Remington name is seen etched on a model 870 shotgun at Duke’s Sport Shop in New Castle, Pa. For years, the gun industry has been immune from most lawsuits, but a recent ruling allowing families of victims in the Newtown school shooting to challenge the way an AR15 used by the shooter was marketed is upending that longstanding roadblock. The U.S. Supreme Court recently rejected efforts by gunmaker Remington to quash the lawsuit, allowing it to continue to be heard in Connecticut courts.