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04-15-2015, 12:27 PM
(Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Tuesday said Wal-Mart Stores Inc will not be required to let shareholders vote at its annual meeting on a proposal to force tighter oversight of its sale of high-capacity guns.
In a brief order, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia lifted an injunction imposed late last year by U.S. District Judge Leonard Stark that would have required a vote.
The proposal by Trinity Church, a historic church in downtown Manhattan, would have required Wal-Mart's board to more closely examine the sale of products that might endanger public safety, hurt Wal-Mart's reputation or offend "family and community values" integral to the retailer's brand.
Trinity said these products might include guns with clips holding more than 10 rounds, a type it said "enabled" mass killings in Newtown, Connecticut and Aurora, Colorado.
Lawyers for Trinity did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Randy Hargrove, a spokesman for Wal-Mart, said: "The 3rd Circuit reached the right decision."
The appeals court did not explain its reasoning but said it will issue an opinion later. It ruled six days after hearing oral arguments.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York and Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware
In a brief order, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia lifted an injunction imposed late last year by U.S. District Judge Leonard Stark that would have required a vote.
The proposal by Trinity Church, a historic church in downtown Manhattan, would have required Wal-Mart's board to more closely examine the sale of products that might endanger public safety, hurt Wal-Mart's reputation or offend "family and community values" integral to the retailer's brand.
Trinity said these products might include guns with clips holding more than 10 rounds, a type it said "enabled" mass killings in Newtown, Connecticut and Aurora, Colorado.
Lawyers for Trinity did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Randy Hargrove, a spokesman for Wal-Mart, said: "The 3rd Circuit reached the right decision."
The appeals court did not explain its reasoning but said it will issue an opinion later. It ruled six days after hearing oral arguments.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York and Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware