The National Shooting Sports Foundation is funding a lawsuit filed May 15 in the Circuit Court of Fauquier County, Virginia, seeking an emergency preliminary injunction to stop the state's new assault firearms ban from taking effect on July 1. The case — Black v. Hook — was brought on behalf of two Virginia residents, Eric Black and Britton Condon, along with three industry plaintiffs: Clark's Gun Shop of Fauquier County doing business as Clark Brothers, Optimus Arms LLC, a Virginia-based rifle manufacturer, and Hexmag USA LLC, which produces the standard-capacity magazines the law would ban from sale. AmmoLand reported the filing's details, and the NSSF press release outlined the strategic reasoning.

The state court venue is the central strategic choice. By structuring the complaint to invoke claims under both the U.S. Constitution and the Virginia Constitution — specifically Article I, Section 13, which protects the right to keep and bear arms, and Article XI, Section 4, which protects the right to hunt, fish, and harvest game — and by filing in Fauquier County Circuit Court rather than federal district court, the plaintiffs have closed off the Commonwealth's ability to remove the case to the federal system. Without a removable federal claim, the case stays in state court, and any appeal runs through the Virginia Court of Appeals and the Virginia Supreme Court rather than the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. The Fourth Circuit has consistently ruled against Second Amendment challenges to state firearms restrictions, making it the least favorable venue available. The NSSF specifically cited this forum-selection strategy as central to why it chose to back a state court vehicle alongside the federal suits already filed.

The plaintiffs filed an emergency motion for a preliminary injunction alongside the complaint, asking the court to schedule a hearing by June 19 — the minimum window needed for a ruling before the July 1 effective date. Virginia's SB 749, signed by Governor Spanberger on May 15, bans the sale and transfer of modern sporting rifles and prohibits magazines capable of holding more than 15 rounds, with felony penalties for violations.

The industry plaintiff lineup reflects concrete, immediate harm. Clark Brothers is a well-established firearms retailer in Northern Virginia with substantial inventory in the affected categories. Optimus Arms manufactures the modern sporting rifles the law targets for a sales ban. Hexmag produces the standard-capacity magazines the law would prohibit from sale entirely. All three face economic harm that begins the moment the law takes effect without a court order.

Black v. Hook operates in parallel with the federal suits filed by the NRA, SAF, FPC, and GOA immediately after the governor's signature, but it runs on a structurally independent legal track. More than two dozen Virginia sheriffs and Commonwealth's Attorneys have publicly stated they will not enforce the ban, which adds political pressure without substituting for judicial relief. A court order — whether from the Fauquier County Circuit Court or a federal judge — remains the only mechanism that can stop July 1 enforcement.

The June 19 hearing request is the next critical date for Virginia dealers, manufacturers, and gun owners watching the litigation.