As we’ve written about over the past several years, there have been consistent rallying cries for common-sense banking reform for the cannabis industry. The SAFE Banking Act, which would allow federally regulated financial institutions to work with state-legal cannabis businesses, has been passed by the U.S. House of Representatives a whopping seven times. However, the
The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (“LCB”) has clarified what cannabinoid additives are allowed in Cannabis products in WA. The LCB recently published a notice that it had adopted interpretive statement IS22-01, “Use of Additives in Authorized Cannabis Products”. The adopted policy statement clarifies that non-cannabidiol (“non-CBD”) cannabinoids may be added to cannabis products
Many cannabis companies spend significant resources developing new cannabis cultivars or refining popular strain genetics. As they do so, more and more are looking for strategies to protect those investments. Plant patents for purportedly novel cannabis plants are increasingly common, but are plant patents really the best way to protect cannabis genes? In addition to
Welcome to Part 2 in this series on New York’s cannabis retail dispensary regulations, covering security. In Part 1, we covered the rules around dispensary operations. As we also previously summarized, on Friday, October 28, 2022, the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) released its “Guidance for Adult-Use Dispensaries” (the Regulations). The Regulations are promulgated to
The OLCC rulemaking process continues after a public hearing on October 25 and the close of the public comment period on October 31. You can read our prior coverage here, here and here, and you can read the proposed rules here. The public hearing lasted about 35 minutes and a hot topic was whether retailers may
On November 15, 2022, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear issued an executive order intended to decriminalizes medical cannabis. This is one of the most interesting executive orders we’ve seen in a bit – and that’s saying something after the last six years in this country. Let’s take a look at exactly what it does. It’s worth
It’s no secret that, among California’s many cannabis industry issues, local control continues to stymie the success of the Golden State’s industry. In this, California is not alone– most cannabis is all local. However, after these mid-term elections, there appears to be a bit of a California cannabis local control shift. That’s a good thing.
Federal or state trademarks, which should I register? This is a question we regularly get in our IP practice. For cannabis brands in particular, the answer is often straightforward. The lawful use requirement The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is responsible for registering trademarks at the federal level. According to the Trademark Act
We’ve anticipated this for a while, but a recent lawsuit indicates that certain marijuana company mislabeling antics are getting called out, regarding false advertising. One recent lawsuit heralds a potential new wave of litigation. The lawsuit The plaintiffs are two California consumers who sued a California marijuana company, DreamFields Brands, Inc. and Med for America
Brazil’s elections recently took place, with Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva voted into a third term as Brazil’s president. To learn what the results mean for cannabis, we sat down with Rafael Arcuri of Brazil’s National Association of Industrial Hemp (ANC). While some challenges lie ahead, overall Lula’s return to power augurs well for cannabis
