Experts Say Barrett Supreme Court Confirmation Could Revolutionize Gun Litigation

Legal scholars say Amy Coney Barrett's judicial philosophy could settle legal stalemates and disagreements that have seen lower federal courts deliver a variety of rulings on gun rights.

Barrett's adoption of what experts refer to as a "text, history and tradition" philosophy—which relies on the text and historic applications of the Second Amendment, rather than the applications of "balancing tests" of individual rights and government interest to determine whether or not a gun law is constitutional—could be revolutionary for Second Amendment cases.

"In practice, the Court’s adoption of the ‘text, history, and tradition' test would mean a lot of previously settled circuit precedent gets unsettled," Jacob D. Charles, executive director of Duke University's Center for Firearms Law, told the Washington Free Beacon.