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October, 2017

Spillover Effects of Permissive Marijuana Laws — Lessons from Local Alcohol and Firearms Controls

Oct. 31, 2017—All recreational marijuana states give local governments the power to ban the commercial distribution of the drug. Even some medical marijuana states do the same. The appeal of such “marijuana localism” is plain: It arguably gives communities that oppose legalization the ability to “opt-out” of legalization and thereby defuses some opposition to state reforms. A...

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Insurance for Marijuana Suppliers

Oct. 25, 2017—Marijuana suppliers often cannot obtain insurance coverage, which heightens their exposure to risks. As reported in The Cannabist, recent California wildfires highlight the risks these suppliers now must face on their own. Jay Mootz (University of the Pacific – McGeorge School of Law), has an informative new article that discusses insurance for the marijuana industry:...

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California’s Public Education Campaign

Oct. 20, 2017—When states legalize marijuana for adults, they commonly launch campaigns to educate the public on how to use the drug safely. The book discusses some examples drawn from early adopters, like Colorado’s “Good to Know” campaign (see pages 232-35 and 500, n.3). Now California is getting in on the act. Last month the state department...

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The Odd Legal Status of CBD under Federal Law

Oct. 18, 2017—As discussed in Chapter 4 of the book, much of the controversy surrounding marijuana’s purported benefits and harms has stemmed from THC, the psychoactive cannabinoid commonly found in the cannabis plant. However, another non-psychoactive cannabinoid, cannabidiol (CBD), has been drawing increasing interest, because it purportedly generates its own distinct medical benefits (e.g., in calming seizures) while producing none...

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Cases to Watch: Bourgoin v. Twin Rivers and Workers’ Compensation

Oct. 6, 2017—State marijuana reforms spawn a host of interesting (by which I mean complicated) questions for employers. To date, the question that has drawn the most attention concerns whether employers are required to accommodate employees’ use of marijuana off the job. That issue is discussed in my book at pages 662-681 and on this blog here and here....

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