Grading the Presidential Candidates on Cannabis: Ron DeSantis

We recently kicked off our series of posts grading the presidential candidates on their cannabis stances (check out the first post, on Joe Biden). Today we turn to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who as of January 8 was a distant second in the race for the nomination to frontrunner Donald Trump. But with Trump facing

mlk

MLK Day: Cannabis and Civil Rights

Last fall, I came across a memorable opinion piece by Steven King (paywalled), a guy who has written some 10 million words in his career. This particular piece was four short paragraphs, however. Seven sentences. It addressed mass shootings in the United States and it was uncharacteristically short because King concluded that the problem, though

gun rights

Cannabis and Gun Rights: Predictions for the Future

Big federal law changes in cannabis regulation are on the horizon. One area where I expect a lot of movement in the coming years is with respect to gun rights. I write on this topic fairly extensively, and you can see my links below. Today I want to talk about what changes I think are

biden cannabis

Grading the Presidential Candidates on Cannabis: Joe Biden

Gentle readers, once again we find ourselves in a Presidential election year. Feel free to join me in tuning out the deluge of reporting and social media as to matters you cannot control in the slightest, and which are mostly negative and discouraging. Except for this blog post, which I promise will be great. In

close corporation

What is the Deal with California Close Corporations?

We spill a lot of ink on the Canna Law Blog talking about different types of business entities that cannabis entrepreneurs often use. In most cases though, the choice is between LLC and corporation. It may come as a surprise to some readers that some states have many different subcategories of corporations, including California. Today

cannabis contract

Executing Cannabis Contracts

I spend a LOT of time blogging about the importance of written cannabis contracts as a general concept (most recently here or here). Today I want to talk about something that a lot of people overlook when it comes to cannabis contract drafting: how the contract will actually be signed. You may think this is

delta-8 trademark

Delta-8 Trademarks Update

The impact on Delta-8 THC (“D8”) of AK Futures v. Boyd Street Distro, a 2022 Ninth Circuit decision, has been widely exaggerated. As my colleague Griffen Thorne explains: What AK Futures actually did was affirm a preliminary ruling in a trademark dispute where legality of delta-8 products was one of a number of issues at play. In order to

cannabis business

The Top Four Risks for Cannabis Businesses and Investors in 2024

2024 is going to be a crazy year for cannabis businesses and investors. Among many other things, there will be a general election, possible rescheduling to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), an upcoming Farm Bill that could re-tool how hemp and hemp products are regulated, and maybe even some federal cannabis legislation.

cannabis contracts

Don’t Use AI to Write Cannabis Contracts

One of the most persistent and common failures in the cannabis industry is using handshakes instead of written cannabis contracts. This is an issue I’ve written about for years (most recently here), and it doesn’t seem like there has been much of a willingness to change. A lot of companies would like to move into

cannabis loan due diligence

What Lenders Look for In Cannabis Loan Due Diligence

You may think that due diligence is something reserved for business or real estate purchases. But due diligence is also a must for lenders in cannabis loan transactions. I recently wrote a post about what borrowers can look forward to in cannabis loan transaction. Today I want to do a deeper dive into due diligence