Legal Question in Civil Litigation in New Mexico

Your question is more than a little bit vague and I may have more questions than answers. First off, the 'law school' answer about donative intent is that there are three parts required to establish what is broadly termed "donative intent" and those parts are: (1) a donative intent on the part of the donor; (2) delivery of the subject matter of the gift; and (3) an absolute and irrevocable surrender by the donor of ownership and dominion over the gift. From there the legal analysis in a specific jurisdiction (i.e., NM) kicks in. Considering the way you phrased your inquiry your 1st sentence says your father gave you "a collection of guns." Next, you say "he had always said. . . .". My question then is, Did he give you the collection and say something to the effect that "you are holding these for me but someday they will be yours" or did he say for years and year "someday these guns will be yours" and then he gave them to you? You then say "that day came" . . . . after he got arrested. It sounds like maybe he gave you the guns saying "someday they will be yours but in the meanwhile hold them for me." Then, from the words you used to describe the "taking back" I assume he used them as collateral for his attorney fees and then, for all intents and purposes, "took them back" even though you were holding the guns. I think the timeline and specifically, "#2" above are going to be the primary part of the analysis. You are probably going to end up in a lawsuit with your father or his attorney. If you want to help your dad 'stay out of jail' then it sounds like some kind of deal needs to be reached among the 3 of you. If you are telling your dad to figure out his own way to get out of trouble then it sounds like you and his lawyer are going to end up in court with each other. I hope I have pointed out that there is not an easy "yes" or "no" answer to the question you posed. From the way your question is worded it may be likely you will end up spending a fair amount of time and money on a local lawyer to fight this issue.

Good Luck.

Law Guru

A gift, once given, cannot be reclaimed. If he gave you physical possession of the guns without any provable conditions, they are yours. A lawsuit is an empty threat when a gift is completed.