Updates Category
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...
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...
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....
The Ongoing Criminal Case Against a San Diego Marijuana Law Attorney
Sep. 29, 2017—Back in May 2017, the San Diego County District Attorney filed criminal charges against a medical marijuana dispensary (Med West) for allegedly producing concentrated cannabis oil using dangerous chemicals. I discuss the key statute involved in the case on pages 305-07 of my book. Even more notably, the district attorney also filed charges against the...
New Article Proposes Expanded State Protections for Marijuana Trademarks
Sep. 22, 2017—As discussed in my book (pages 406-412), marijuana suppliers currently cannot obtain federal protection for their trademarks (or other intellectual property). Some states do provide protection for marijuana trademarks, but that protection is often limited (n. 4, page 411). But Russ Jacobs, who is corporate counsel at Starbucks, has proposed a novel way to expand...
Are Physicians Being Adequately Trained to Recommend Marijuana to Their Patients?
Sep. 15, 2017—Just because a state legalizes medical marijuana doesn’t mean that physicians will necessarily recommend the drug to their patients. Indeed, surveys have shown that only a small percentage of physicians in medical marijuana states have recommended the drug to their patients or plan to in the future (page 616 of my book). As I discuss...
Iowa Officials Urged Not to Permit Importation of CBD from Minnesota
Sep. 12, 2017—The Iowa Attorney General’s office just advised the state health department not to authorize two Minnesota medical marijuana dispensaries to supply medical marijuana to Iowa residents. If heeded, the advice would nullify a novel provision of Iowa’s nascent medical marijuana program. The provision, adopted as part of a package of reforms in May 2017, calls...
Interesting Opportunity to Try to Shape the WHO’s Scheduling of CBD (and Possibly Domestic Law Too)
Aug. 23, 2017—The World Health Organization (WHO) is apparently reviewing the scheduling of Cannabidiol (CBD) and 16 other drugs under the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances. Prior to a meeting of the relevant WHO committee in early November, the WHO has asked member states (including the U.S.) for input. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible...
Useful Marijuana Law Links Posted
Aug. 18, 2017—I have just posted an assortment of links to external websites that provide more news and additional perspectives on marijuana law and policy. The links can be found on the right hand column under Resources: External Links page. They are organized (loosely) into five categories: Advocacy Organizations Blogs and News Government Agencies Industry Sites Research Sites...
Coverage of DOJ’s Response to Legalization
Aug. 17, 2017—The Cannabist has compiled a wonderful collection of primary documents detailing the back-and-forth between the governors of the first four recreational legalization states (Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington) and the U.S. Attorney General, Jeff Sessions. The documents include: April 2017 letters from state leaders imploring Sessions to adhere to the Obama Administration’s non-enforcement policy. That...