On December 22, the Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”) issued new warning letters to five companies that illegally sold and marketed unapproved CBD products, which the companies claimed could prevent, diagnose, mitigate, treat or cure various medical conditions. This latest round of enforcement actions was triggered by specific concerns with the manner in which
On December 17, the FTC issued a press release announcing its first law enforcement crackdown on deceptive claims in the growing market for cannabidiol (CBD) products. According to the press release, a number of “companies made unsupported claims that their oils, balms, gummies, coffee, and other goods could treat serious diseases such as cancer and
It’s been a little while since we’ve talked about patent protection on the blog, but a recent consultation reminded me a primer on the different types of patents potentially available could be beneficial. Here in the United States, there are three broad categories of patents, all of which are governed by the Patent Act (or
On November 17, 2020, the Fresno County Superior Court dismissed a lawsuit filed by 24 California cities seeking to invalidate state cannabis regulations that allow delivery of cannabis to customers in jurisdictions that have banned retail commercial cannabis activity. Many industry players and media are touting the dismissal as a “win” for California cannabis companies.
Last month, along with streamlined licensing, the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC) announced a significant (and welcome) change to its compliance function by instituting a new Verification of Compliance program (VOC) that will focus on education rather than penalties for certain types of marijuana rule violations. The VOC launched in early October and arose from
A few days ago, I wrote a post on cannabis investing and the concept of debt v. equity. I noted that it’s very common to see lenders ask for personal guarantees when providing loans to cannabis businesses. Guaranty agreements are a hugely important type of contract that deserve their own post. Below, I will get
On Friday, the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) released an Interim Final Rule (the “Rule”) that, as we discussed, threatens the hemp industry by treating partially processed hemp extract not intended for consumption (also known as “intermediary hemp”) as a Schedule I controlled substance. This is hugely problematic because intermediary hemp is an essential and necessary
Earlier this year, we discussed the legality of lesser-known hemp-derived cannabinoids which appeared to be gaining success in the U.S. One of these promising cannabinoids is cannabinol (“CBN”). Put simply, CBN is a non-intoxicating cannabinoid that results from the degradation of THC. Because it is difficult, if not impossible, to grow CBN-rich strains of hemp,
Anyone who knows me knows that I really enjoy sports of all kinds. I was a college soccer player and played competitive club soccer in Florida before that from the age of 7 onward (and I now play in an adult co-ed league in Los Angeles). Unfortunately, COVID-19 has put the damper on watching live
Even though COVID-19 continues to wreak havoc on the world and the U.S. economy, we continue to work on interesting and complex business deals with our cannabis clients with many clients either looking to acquire or be acquired as the industry matures and inevitable consolidation occurs. And because many deals continue to have a Delaware
