Ortega v. Lujan Grisham
Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit · No. 24-2121
⚖️Procedural — no merits ruling
denial of rehearing en banc, not a new merits ruling, though it leaves the panel decision against the waiting period intact
GunMapUSA assessment of the outcome's direction, not a statement that the court decided rightly or wrongly.
What the court held
New Mexico's Waiting Period Act generally requires a seller to wait seven days before transferring a firearm to a buyer, and a Tenth Circuit panel had held the law unconstitutional under the Second Amendment. The full court denied the State's petition for rehearing en banc after a poll of the active judges failed to carry, leaving the panel decision in place without further merits review. Judge Federico, joined by Judge Moritz, dissented from the denial, arguing the case was exceptionally important and in tension with the circuit's earlier decision in Rocky Mountain Gun Owners v. Polis.
Summarized from the court's opinion.
What this case is about
New Mexico waiting period for consumer firearm purchases
GunMapUSA summary of the issue, not a quotation from the court.
Key Dates
- 2025-08-19 — Decided
- 2025-05-13 — Argued
Sources
- CourtListener — retrieved 2026-08-08
Summary of public court records. Not legal advice.