Abandoned collection , owner pssed

mac1911

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So how does one take possession of items from a deceased owners estate . No claims to owner ship on anything in the estate.
No known paper work yet.


House was abandoned owner passed away some time ago , friend asked as he is tearing down the house.
The house had a fire over the summer.
 
lotr-keep-it-safe.gif
 
"Abandoned collection, owner pssed"
Reading the title, I thought you left out an "i" but "a" works too, I guess.
"Abandoned collection, owner pssed"
Reading the title, I thought you left out an "i" but "a" works too, I guess.
Short of confirmed details
Hes a “salvage” expert
He gets to tear down the house for free but gets all contents and material out of it.
Hes going after the 100 plus year old beams , 2 cars and some other items spared in the fire.
He says he has 90 days to figure out the legalities of the firearms.
He does not even know for sure if the items are NFA at the moment or replicas.
Hes looking for a direction to go in.
 
I'm sure you could advise him what the firearms are, but would probably need to have one of our NES attorneys advise on the legalities part. If you get to see the firearms, please let us know what they were.!
 
Is the friend related? If not, why is he tearing down the house?
I hardly know the guy. He knows me to be into guns.
Hes pulled out all sorts of “military” collectables. Bayonets, uniforms,radios
Pins, medals and a handful of rifles

He was hired to dismantle the house and dispose if it. He specializes in tearing down old condemned houses .salvages the wood and any thing and everything house and contents is his by contract.
Insurance has been settled, deceased owner of houses family has signed off on property and appears the few acres was sold to a “preservation” trust?
House to be removed , foundation crumbled and filled.
Im waiting on any info on said guns.
All he said is they are in storage until he finds out if they are just old guns or NFA expensive guns. So far he only had a neighbor saying he was a gun collector and used to shoot machine guns in the back yard.
 
Anyone who is licensed can take possession of the firearms. With a green card, anyone can also take possession of NFA items provided they are legally registered federally.

Take ownership is similar for regular Title 1 stuff. If you get permission from friend/estate then you can register them on the portal. No FFL necessary.
For NFA stuff, that will take a form with the ATF and more estate documents to prove you are being given ownership. Not a big deal but needs approval first.
 
I hardly know the guy. He knows me to be into guns.
Hes pulled out all sorts of “military” collectables. Bayonets, uniforms,radios
Pins, medals and a handful of rifles

He was hired to dismantle the house and dispose if it. He specializes in tearing down old condemned houses .salvages the wood and any thing and everything house and contents is his by contract.
Insurance has been settled, deceased owner of houses family has signed off on property and appears the few acres was sold to a “preservation” trust?
House to be removed , foundation crumbled and filled.
Im waiting on any info on said guns.
All he said is they are in storage until he finds out if they are just old guns or NFA expensive guns. So far he only had a neighbor saying he was a gun collector and used to shoot machine guns in the back yard.

If the automatic weapons are NFA registered, then this friend better have a green card. Without one he is not allowed to even handle a machine gun by Mass law.

If they are not registered, then he should surrender them to the ATF as soon as possible.

If he doesn't know, then he should contact ATF and explain that they were given to him in the settlement of an estate and they will help him get it all squared away without penalty. Try funny business and they find out, going to jail.

He may want to transfer possession to an FFL/SOT while he figures out what is what
 
IANAL, but for the sake of discussion.

What state is this in? Who authorized this agreement? Does he have it in writing? If it was next of kin who said "go to town on demo and keep anything you like" in writing, I suppose that would make your friend the legatee. What happens next depends on geographic location, but I suppose he would be the legal owner at that point. If this were MA, maybe (not 100% sure) MGL Chapter 140, Section 129C would kick in. Specifically:

(n) The transfer of a firearm, rifle or shotgun upon the death of an owner to his heir or legatee shall be subject to the provisions of this section, provided that said heir or legatee shall within one hundred and eighty days of such transfer, obtain a firearm identification card or a license to carry firearms if not otherwise an exempt person who is qualified to receive such or apply to the licensing authority for such further limited period as may be necessary for the disposition of such firearm, rifle or shotgun;
 
I hardly know the guy. He knows me to be into guns.
Hes pulled out all sorts of “military” collectables. Bayonets, uniforms,radios
Pins, medals and a handful of rifles

He was hired to dismantle the house and dispose if it. He specializes in tearing down old condemned houses .salvages the wood and any thing and everything house and contents is his by contract.
Insurance has been settled, deceased owner of houses family has signed off on property and appears the few acres was sold to a “preservation” trust?
House to be removed , foundation crumbled and filled.
Im waiting on any info on said guns.
All he said is they are in storage until he finds out if they are just old guns or NFA expensive guns. So far he only had a neighbor saying he was a gun collector and used to shoot machine guns in the back yard.

If the collection contains NFA items or non-NFA guns worth five figures or more, I would consult a pro-2A attorney that knows estate law in the applicable state. People are going to care if items worth $10k+ go missing, especially if they find out after the fact that those guns sold for big money. Not to mention what ATF and relevant state and local authorities might do.

Granddad's old Iver Johnson top break .32 revolver? No one cares. A Thompson or Maxim or BAR? People are going to care.
 
He was hired to dismantle the house and dispose if it. He specializes in tearing down old condemned houses .salvages the wood and any thing and everything house and contents is his by contract.
Insurance has been settled, deceased owner of houses family has signed off on property and appears the few acres was sold to a “preservation” trust?

IANAL, but for the sake of discussion.

What state is this in? Who authorized this agreement? Does he have it in writing? If it was next of kin who said "go to town on demo and keep anything you like" in writing, I suppose that would make your friend the legatee. What happens next depends on geographic location, but I suppose he would be the legal owner at that point. If this were MA, maybe (not 100% sure) MGL Chapter 140, Section 129C would kick in. Specifically:

(n) The transfer of a firearm, rifle or shotgun upon the death of an owner to his heir or legatee shall be subject to the provisions of this section, provided that said heir or legatee shall within one hundred and eighty days of such transfer, obtain a firearm identification card or a license to carry firearms if not otherwise an exempt person who is qualified to receive such or apply to the licensing authority for such further limited period as may be necessary for the disposition of such firearm, rifle or shotgun;
My only question would be whether the contract would extend to firearms.
 
I don't for the life of me understand how or why there is any question about what to do here.

Pay for the guns, put them in your car and drive home.

Probably best done out from under prying eyes of Karen neighbors if possible.

This.

First, that guy that found them and even mentioned it to anybody is an idiot.

This, too.
 
I don't for the life of me understand how or why there is any question about what to do here.

Pay for the guns, put them in your car and drive home.

Probably best done out from under prying eyes of Karen neighbors if possible.

I've had good luck with music instrument cases. Nobody bats an eye if you load a truck with instruments.
 
They were destroyed in the fire right????? That’s the official filing…. Found molten piles of metal and wood ash… the end.
The guy is not looking for a gun to tuck away in secret. Hes looking to see how to keep/handle/sell the items legally
 
Anyone who is licensed can take possession of the firearms. With a green card, anyone can also take possession of NFA items provided they are legally registered federally.

Take ownership is similar for regular Title 1 stuff. If you get permission from friend/estate then you can register them on the portal. No FFL necessary.
For NFA stuff, that will take a form with the ATF and more estate documents to prove you are being given ownership. Not a big deal but needs approval first.
Green card is exclusive to machine guns.

Other NFA items include SBRs, AOWs, DDs and suppressors (manufacturer only may possess in MA), SBRs and AOWs that are short barrelled shotguns are covered by a MA LTC, but you need the federal paper in line. No need for a green card.
 
Green card is exclusive to machine guns.

Other NFA items include SBRs, AOWs, DDs and suppressors (manufacturer only may possess in MA), SBRs and AOWs that are short barrelled shotguns are covered by a MA LTC, but you need the federal paper in line. No need for a green card.
Yes, but that is misleading. Obviously these do not have the Federal paper in line for the possessor; so the possessor better have a green card if he/she starts waving them around John Law.
 
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