While most attention has focused on the recently concluded marijuana rescheduling hearing, an equally significant legal battle has unfolded in the D.C. Circuit over the final rescheduling order (“Final Order”). Petitioners, the Department of Justice, newly intervening parties, and amici participants have exchanged a series of briefs over the past month. Those filings may ultimately
The hearing on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the rescheduling of “marijuana” commenced on June 29, 2026 and will end tomorrow, July 15th. The Government brought two witnesses to the stand on the first day, and then seven prohibitionist organizations had the floor for the remaining seven days of the hearing. As I discussed
Until last week, federal law prohibited marijuana users from owning or possessing firearms, even in states where marijuana is legal. In recent years, we have covered the differing opinions by federal courts challenging this status quo. On June 18, 2026, the Supreme Court held in a 9-0 decision in U.S. v. Hemani that 18 U.S.C.
The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB) published an interesting bulletin this Tuesday, June 16th. The bulletin finds that DEA’s final rule on medical marijuana rescheduling “does not appear to apply to Washington’s cannabis licensees, due to the statutory framework predominantly regulating recreational cannabis.” The word “predominantly” is doing a lot of work in
With just over two weeks until DEA’s expedited processing deadline for state legal operators to apply for DEA registration, several petitioners litigating the legality of the DEA’s final rule have filed a motion to stay DEA’s final rule in the D.C. Circuit (“Motion”). The Motion was brought by the National Drug and Alcohol Screening Association,
Minnesota continues to refine its cannabis framework with an Omnibus Cannabis Bill affecting licensed cannabis (marijuana) businesses, hemp operators and medical patients. The new package was signed by Governor Waltz last week. Some of the changes are effective immediately, while others take effect January 1, 2027. It’s common for state cannabis programs to evolve through
Since acting Attorney General Todd Blanch announced that state-legal medical marijuana would move to Schedule III, the commentary has been relentless — hot takes, doomsayers, and self-proclaimed experts flooding LinkedIn with conflicting interpretations. Much of it is speculative, overstated, and uneducated. This piece cuts through the noise and responds to the questions I have fielded
For state-licensed medical marijuana operators, a narrow and potentially transformative window has opened–one that could position your business for future interstate and even global trade. While the Acting Attorney General’s rescheduling order is likely to face legal challenges, the immediate reality is this: you have a 60-day opportunity to act. As of yesterday, April 28,
The DOJ Final Order on marijuana rescheduling dropped last week. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche ordered that “FDA-approved drug products containing marijuana, as well [as] marijuana in any form covered by a state medical marijuana license, be placed in schedule III of the CSA.” The Order went further than many of us anticipated. It also
U.S. joins much of the world in acknowledging medical marijuana The U.S. has joined much of the world in acknowledging medical marijuana. Let international trading begin! Effective April 28, 2026, the acting Attorney General “hereby order[s] that FDA-approved drug products containing marijuana, as well marijuana in any form covered by a state medical marijuana license,
