MASSACHUSETTS CANNABIS UPDATE: STATE IMPOSES STRICT ENERGY LIMITS ON MARIJUANA CULTIVATORS
Areas which have legalized cannabis cultivation have seen corresponding increases in energy use: In Colorado, cannabis grow facilities used 200 million kilowatt hours of electricity in 2014, with cannabis cultivation accounting for almost half of Denver’s yearly increase in energy use. For cities and states planning to legalize cannabis while still limiting their use of electricity, regulating the power used by cannabis cultivation is a must.
A TOUGH WEEK FOR CBD: THE HIA V. DEA RULING AND A WISCONSIN POLICY UNDERLINE NEED FOR CLARITY
CBD is having a tough week. The Court issued an unfavorable ruling in the HIA v. DEA case and Wisconsin issued a “Guidance” letter explicitly stating that CBD from industrial hemp is illegal in the state. I’ll discuss both.
USA: FDA and CBD – Brownson Norby
Earlier this month, on April 9, 2018, FDA published a notice requesting comments from the public on the scheduling of cannabis-related substances (“Cannabis Plant and Resin; Extracts and Tinctures of Cannabis; Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol; Stereoisomers of Tetrahydrocannabinol; Cannabidiol”). See here: FDA Request for Comments.
The McConnell Hemp Bill and Federal Preemption
The most notable thing about The Hemp Farming Act of 2018, S. 2667, introduced by Senator McConnell on April 12, 2018 (Hemp Bill), is that it will make hemp lawful throughout the country at both the federal and state levels. This is huge. When advising my clients about industrial hemp we invariably discuss the difficult issue of which states they should avoid. The Hemp Bill fixes that problem.
Keystone ReLeaf vs State of Pennsylvania: Judgement
The decision came down Friday 20 April 2018. Josh Horn of Fox Rothschild provides some initial commentary.
IP USA: Four IP Strategies That Every Cannabis Startup Should Be Using
Authored By: Matthew Miller MG Miller Law Firm Erasing the Stigma Fully embracing the startup culture, Millenials are quickly adapting the learning and teachings from their experiences into distinguishable cannabis brands. Like most startups that spring...
Ninth Circuit Hears Medical Cannabis Case
Just last week, on March 29th, a three-judge panel for the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held a special setting at the University of Idaho College of Law. Judges Richard Tallman, N. Randy Smith, and Morgan Christen considered the case of Michael Assenberg v. Whitman County
Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana: Apologies and Flower (and Leaf)
On April 16, 2018, Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Rachel Levine accepted the report of the Medical Marijuana Advisory Board (Board) and will immediately implement all proposed changes to the Medical Marijuana Act (MMA)
WA: 2018 Washington State Comfort Legislation for the Financial Industry and Accountants Dealing With Licensed Marijuana Businesses
On June 7, 2018, a supermajority of the Washington Legislature blessed financial institutions and accountants providing services for the licensed marijuana industry.The new law is comfort legislation for a special class in Washington. It is also a protest against impressions about the threat of federal prosecution. But what comfort is the legislation for persons falling outside the protected group?
Semantics Matter in the Law: : An Analysis of the FDA Notice Regarding Cannabinoids
Rather than focus this article on the particulars of the FDA request for comments on cannabinoids under docket FDA-2018-N-1072, I am going to use the FDA notice as a vehicle for discussing the use of tricky semantics by the FDA and DEA, which I posit is both intentional and effective in its current war on cannabinoids. This is the sentence on which I’m going to focus:
Pennsylvania: Medical Marijuana: Turning Over on Leaf
In early April, Pennsylvania’s Medical Marijuana Advisory Board (Board) delivered a report to the Department of Health (DOH) recommending changes to the medical marijuana program. Among the proposed reforms – recognizing additional medical conditions as cannabis-treatable (neurodegenerative diseases, dyskinetic and spastic movement disorders, opioid addiction treatment and terminal illness), allowing physicians to opt out of DOH’s public registry, and allowing licensed dispensaries to sell cannabis in dry leaf and flower form.
Oregon: Josephine County Sues State of Oregon Over Marijuana Laws
Josephine County responded aggressively to a recent adverse decision by the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA), bringing suit against the State of Oregon to invalidate the state’s marijuana laws…The county’s preemption arguments could have broad impact, implicating both recreational and marijuana legalization schemes throughout the nation.
Massachusetts Opens Recreational Cannabis Licensing
On April 2nd, the Massachusetts Cannabis Commission opened its licensing application process for cannabis businesses, marking Massachusetts’ official entry into the legal cannabis industry.
Andrew Sacks: Cannabis Dispensary 1000 Foot Rule In Pennsylvania
There are hundreds of day-care centers just in Philadelphia. The “thousand-foot rule” means that there are almost no potential dispensary locations in the city, and that patients must travel to the suburbs, or to the far corners of Philadelphia, to purchase their medical marijuana. This hardship will be felt most by the old and the needy.
Interpreting Arkansas’ Medical Marijuana Statute: An Uncertain Landscape for Employees and Employers Alike
On January 4, 2018, the United States Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, sent the marijuana industry into a panic. In a memorandum addressed to all U.S. Attorneys, Mr. Sessions reminded America that marijuana remains illegal under federal law and, in the process, rescinded the “Cole Memorandum,” an Obama-era directive to federal prosecutors to de-prioritize the prosecution of marijuana industry participants in states where it has been legalized.
“The Price Is Wrong: Oregon Wrongfully Asserts Cannabis Sales Tax Applies to Seeds”
However, the administrative rule reaches beyond the statutory language adopted by the Oregon Legislature to suggest that, somehow, cannabis seeds are subject to the retail sales tax. Prepare yourself for a bit of legal analysis and simple logic. Let’s take a look at how ODOR got it wrong.
“Is Ohio’s Medical Marijuana Program Constitutional ?”
Historically, minority communities have been targeted by law enforcement during cannabis prohibition and as a result a disproportionate amount of incarcerated cannabis offenders are minorities. The provision it argues is narrowly made and is the least disruptive method for helping minorities achieve representation in the Ohio medical marijuana program.
Cannabis Companies and State Trademarks: A Match Made in Heaven
While there are the aforementioned drawbacks to state trademark registrations, they do offer some benefits that a federal trademark registration does not.
Protecting Cannabis Strains in Canada: A Growing Concern
Those who finance, develop, produce and sell cannabis or cannabis derivatives should be cognizant of the intellectual property rights that are available in such products, as well as the risks of violating the rights of others.
Transactional Legal Work Will Accompany Increased M&A Activity in the Cannabis Sector
Lawyers Should Know the Steps in the Traditional M&A Process..