Updates Category
Federal Court Refuses (for now) to Order Return of 7,000 Pounds of “Hemp” Seized by State Police
Feb. 13, 2019—In late January 2019, Idaho state police seized a shipment of nearly 7,000 pounds of cannabis plant material on its way from Oregon to Colorado. They have also charged the driver of the truck with felony marijuana trafficking. See coverage of the case at CNN.com, here, and at the Idaho Statesman, here. The case raises...
Interesting New Tax Court Decision on Section 280E
Jan. 23, 2019—[Updated 1/24/19 to elaborate a bit on my two observations] Happy (belated) new year! Back in late November 2018, the United States Tax Court issued a noteworthy decision in a tax proceeding against Harborside Health Center, one of the nation’s largest (if not THE) largest state licensed marijuana suppliers. The full decision in Patients Mutual...
New Congressional Farm Bill Legalizes Some Marijuana
Dec. 13, 2018—[Updated 12/21 10:45 am: As expected, President Trump signed the Farm Bill into law on Dec. 20. The Commissioner of the FDA also issued a notable statement on the Bill (h/t to Doug Berman). The Commissioner emphasizes the points I make below regarding the ongoing limitations imposed by the FDCA on the use of CBD...
UPDATE: State Judge Holds Use of Race in Ohio Medical Marijuana Licensing Unconstitutional
Nov. 20, 2018—A state trial judge has just held that Ohio’s use of racial preferences in the award of state medical marijuana cultivation licenses violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment (and the Ohio state constitution). The full decision in PharmaCann Ohio, LLC v. Ohio Department of Commerce can be found at Pharmacann Ohio v....
UPDATE: Voters in 3 of 4 States Approve Marijuana Legalization Measures
Nov. 7, 2018—The poll results from the fall 2018 election are now in. Voters in 3 of 4 states approved marijuana legalization measures. Michigan voters approved Proposal 1 by 56% to 44%, making Michigan the 11th state (if we include D.C.) to legalize recreational marijuana. North Dakota voters rejected a recreational legalization measure (Measure 3) by 60%...
UPDATE: Plaintiff Loses Colorado RICO Lawsuit (Safe Streets)
Nov. 1, 2018—As reported by various new outlets (see links below), the jury in the Safe Streets case (now known as Reilly v. 6480 Pickney, LLC) rejected the plaintiff-landowners’ civil RICO claims against a state-licensed marijuana supplier. I discuss the plaintiffs’ claims in an earlier post here and in the book (pages 403-406). Although the defendant (and...
Four Marijuana Measures on the Ballot in November 2018
Oct. 29, 2018—Voters will decide the fate of marijuana legalization measures in four states next week. Michigan and North Dakota voters will decide whether to legalize recreational marijuana (both states already have medical marijuana laws), and Missouri and Utah voters will decide whether to legalize medical marijuana (both states already have CBD laws). The Washington Post has...
The Foreignness of Canadian Marijuana Legalization
Oct. 19, 2018—On October 17, Canada became the second country to legalize recreational marijuana (Uruguay did so in 2014). The Canadian Government has posted the full text of the nation’s recreational marijuana laws (including The Cannabis Act) here. It also has a useful summary of the laws here. In many respects, Canada’s new law resembles the laws...
Observations On Utah’s Proposed State Distribution System
Oct. 12, 2018—[Updated 10/15 to address the possibility of suits in state court.] Just as Utah residents are about to vote on a medical marijuana initiative (Proposition 2), proponents and opponents of the initiative (including Governor Herbert) have announced plans to adopt a compromise medical marijuana law in the state legislature. See the full text of the Utah...
How to Lure Consumers Away from the Marijuana Black Market
Oct. 5, 2018—[Updated 10/8 8:44 am to add more information.] Even in states that have legalized the commercial supply of marijuana, some lawful consumers continue to purchase marijuana from the black market. Those black market sales pose several problems for state regulators; among other things, for example, they (likely) don’t generate any marijuana tax revenues for the...