Exciting news for New Yorkers came on March 28, 2023, when the Second Circuit Court of Appeals entered an Order in the Variscite NY One case, lifting the injunction that prevented the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) from issuing Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) licenses in several New York State
Continue Reading Court Lifts Injunction on NY Cannabis Licenses, Clearing Path for More Dispensaries
Today, nearly four-fifths of the United States have regulated medical marijuana markets. Nearly half of the United States, consisting of twenty-one states along with Washington, D.C. and Guam, have acted to legalize recreational adult-use marijuana. However, the possession, distribution, and sale of marijuana remains illegal under federal law, which means any contact with money that can be traced back to state-legal marijuana operations could still be considered money laundering and expose a bank to significant legal, operational, and regulatory risk.
Continue Reading Marijuana & Banking: What’s the Hold Up? Part 1 – Conflicting Legal Landscapes
Recently an individual employed by Trulieve Inc., who was responsible for grinding and handling cannabis at Trulieve’s cultivation site in Massachusetts, died due to asthma-related complications following exposure to “occupational quantities of whole and ground cannabis,” according to an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) hazard letter issued in June 2022. Under a settlement agreement with OSHA, Trulieve agreed to study the potential hazards of ground marijuana dust.
Continue Reading Employers Subject to Workplace Safety Laws Despite Marijuana’s Illegal Status
As Ohio’s medicinal marijuana industry grows and the public’s attitude towards marijuana continues to improve, various organizations and lawmakers have begun to lay the groundwork to – at long last – legalize adult use cannabis in Ohio in 2023.
Continue Reading The Times They Are A-Changin’: Ohio May Legalize Adult Use Marijuana in 2023
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington (the Court) has upheld the residency requirement set by the Washington Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB) in the case of Brinkmeyer v. LCB. The residency requirement, which requires individuals owning or controlling a licensed business must establish residency 6
Continue Reading Washington’s Residency Requirement Upheld in Court. . . Again
The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB) will open the application period for Social Equity marijuana retail licenses on March 1, 2023. The application period will close on March 30, 2023.
More than 40 marijuana retail licenses that were forfeited, canceled, revoked, or never issued will be made available to social equity applicants in specific jurisdictions across the state.
Continue Reading WA Application Period for Social Equity Marijuana Retail Licenses Opens March 1
The residency requirement for buying a cannabis business in Washington may change this year. The Washington state legislature is considering a pair of identical bills, House Bill 1341 and Senate Bill 5377 (collectively, the Bill), which would authorize out-of-state ownership of licensed cannabis businesses. While it’s too early to tell
Continue Reading Washington's Cannabis Residency Requirement: Proposed Law Could Change Landscape
With an increasing number of states passing laws protecting employees who utilize marijuana, employers throughout the country are presently tasked with redesigning their marijuana-related policies and practices to avoid the (significantly increased) risk of suffering discrimination, retaliation, and other costly claims. With many relevant state laws going into effect throughout the next twelve months, the clock is ticking.
Continue Reading Employers: Clock is Ticking to Update Marijuana Policies
As we approach the end of 2022, we are looking at the top ten national cannabis stories of the year. Here is what we view as the most important cannabis stories of 2022:
On October 6, 2022, President Biden announced that he would pardon
On December 9, 2022, the New York Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) released Cannabis Delivery Guidance allowing retail dispensaries, including Adult-Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) licensees, the ability to deliver cannabis to customers directly in hopes to “jumpstart” cannabis sales before the end of the year. We previously wrote about the
Continue Reading New York to Allow Adult-Use Cannabis Delivery