The U.S. Court of International Trade (“CIT”) issued a recent opinion that indicates the import or export of “drug paraphernalia” to or from states where cannabis is legal represents an exception to the federal ban imposed by the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”). Under 21 U.S.C. § 863(d), “drug paraphernalia” is broadly defined as: any equipment,
Czechia, officially known as the Czech Republic, may soon the join the growing list of European countries with legal adult-use cannabis. Czech National Anti-Drug Coordinator Jindřich Vobořil is drafting the requisite legislation, which could be in place by 2024. As to what the new law might look like: The new measures should establish the level
Yes, medical marijuana could finally be coming to Japan. Last week, a panel made up of Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare pushed for an update to the country's laws and rules to permit the importation of medical marijuana products. Japan is very conservative when it comes to marijuana: there is a strict ban
Government owned cannabis is gaining speed. At least, it is in Canada. This week, I saw a tweet from MJ Biz Daily business journalist, Matt Lamers, that said: The most profitable cannabis businesses in Canada are owned by the government. Provincial monopoly cannabis wholesalers profit/loss (most recent FY): Ontario: $70.2 million; Quebec: $66.5 million; BC:
Panama has adopted medical cannabis regulations, after becoming the first Central American country to legalize medical cannabis in October 2021, pursuant to Law 242. The regulations take the form of a decree issued by President Laurentino Cortizo Cohen, which "regulates the use and access to the product and its derivatives, for therapeutic, medical, veterinary, scientific
International hemp is big business. There are all kinds opportunities around import, export, production, processing, and sale of international hemp and hemp products. We handle these inquiries on a weekly basis, and have since 2018 when the federal government legalized the cultivation of hemp with the passage of the 2018 Agricultural Improvement Act ("2018 Farm Bill").
On August 4, 2022, U.S. President Joe Biden published a formal statement concerning the sentencing of U.S. basketball player Brittney Griner. Griner was just sentenced to nine years in a Russian penal colony and fined one million rubles. We’ve written about Griner’s case before (here and here), but to summarize, she could be spending the
Exciting developments lie ahead for European Union (EU) marijuana legalization. It is inevitable that marijuana legalization sweeps the globe--if you haven't seen it yet, please watch our webinar with Clifford Chance about the existing global economy of marijuana. The question is just one of timing. In Germany, as one prominent example, we're looking at legalization
Last month we weighed in on Thailand becoming the first country in Southeast Asia to decriminalize cannabis. We've seen some bad reporting on this since then, along the lines of "weed is legal in Thailand!" The new Thai regime is not that progressive, but we still feel that Thailand has taken a step in the
Marijuana is illegal in most countries in the world, is federally illegal in the United States, and is highly regulated even in the U.S. states that allow it. Hemp laws are all over the place in the U.S. and are often just as bad as marijuana laws internationally. It goes without saying that it's a
