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‘commerce’

Are State Bans on the Importation of Marijuana Next to Fall Under the DCC?

Aug. 22, 2022—In the last two years, plaintiffs have successfully challenged state residency requirements for marijuana licenses by invoking the Dormant Commerce Clause (DCC), an implied doctrine of federal constitutional law that bars states from discriminating against or imposing undue burdens on interstate commerce. See this post for recent developments in those cases. I provide an in-depth...

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State Restrictions on Interstate Commerce in Cannabis are Unconstitutional

Mar. 3, 2021—The title of this post is the takeaway of a new law review article I have just posted on SSRN. The article challenges the widely held assumption that legalization states may ban imports of cannabis or otherwise prevent nonresidents from participating in their local cannabis markets. Here is the link to a nearly final draft...

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Company Sues Maine for Discriminating Against Non-residents When Licensing Marijuana Businesses

Apr. 2, 2020—A Delaware corporation (Wellness Connection) has sued Maine, challenging a provision of that state’s recreational marijuana law that bars out-of-state companies and non-resident investors from obtaining commercial marijuana licenses. The suit was filed on March 20, 2020, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine. The story has been reported in local papers...

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