Florida Waiting Period Declared Unconstitutional

Oct. 29, 2026: Judge Steven D. Merryday has declined to enter the judgment Florida and the plaintiffs jointly requested, so the settlement described above has not taken effect and Florida's waiting period remains enforceable for now. Merryday said the court needs a more complete presentation of the constitutional issues before ruling. He invited the Governor, the Florida House, the Florida Senate, the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, and the Giffords Law Center to file amicus briefs, with notices of intent due November 30, 2026 and briefs due February 1, 2027; other interested parties may also seek leave to participate by the same November 30 deadline. Dunn v. Glass remains pending rather than closed. The NRA says it remains confident the waiting period will ultimately be struck down, but gun owners should not expect the three-day hold to lift until this expanded briefing process concludes. (Source)

Florida's three-day firearm waiting period is finished — killed not by a trial but by a settlement that carries the same legal force as a court order.

State of play: On June 5, Florida officials made a Rule 68 offer of judgment in Dunn v. Glass, and plaintiffs accepted the same day. The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida will now enter judgment for the plaintiffs on every claim. No trial. No appeal runway on the merits. Done.

Catch up quick:

• Florida's § 790.0655 required a mandatory three-day hold on firearm transfers, regardless of how fast the NICS background check cleared
• Plaintiffs — two individual buyers and two Florida gun stores, backed by the NRA and Mountain States Legal Foundation — argued the delay had no historical tradition under the Bruen standard
• Florida AG James Uthmeier had already concluded the law violated the Second Amendment before the settlement was filed

What this means on the ground: The permanent injunction is direct. Once final judgment is entered, Florida dealers are prohibited from holding a firearm beyond the time it takes to run a background check. NICS clears in a few hours? You walk out with your purchase. The state has seven days to notify every relevant agency and law enforcement office that enforcement has stopped.

"Every government office, including mine, exists to protect your God-given rights as enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. That's why we're settling a landmark federal case that declares Florida's 3-day firearm purchase waiting period unconstitutional under the Second Amendment." — Florida AG James Uthmeier, June 5, 2026

The intrigue: Plaintiffs waived damages entirely. The $10,000 they accepted covers attorney's fees and costs — the point was never money. It was a clean kill on the enforcement mechanism itself, and the defendants knew it. The offer came because the state saw where post-Bruen litigation was heading and chose not to lose harder at trial.

The big picture: Waiting periods that exist independently of background check processing times are now legally exposed in every state that has one. The Bruen framework demands historical tradition, and there isn't one for arbitrary multi-day delays unconnected to vetting. Florida's AG said so out loud. Courts in other circuits will be looking at this settlement when similar cases land on their dockets.

What to watch: This judgment doesn't automatically invalidate waiting period laws elsewhere — but it arms litigants in those states with persuasive precedent and a template. California, Hawaii, and Illinois all have waiting periods longer than background check processing time. Expect challenges to accelerate.