marijuana – Page 2 – Cannabis Industry

July 26, 2019 by Duane Morris

After Legalization: Many Remain Imprisoned For Now-Legal Pot

Imagine for a moment that you are arrested for alcohol possession back when alcohol was illegal. Then, imagine you served a sentence in prison for that possession, perhaps an inordinately severe incarceration sentence. Then imagine that you get out of prison and find it almost impossible to find a job, find housing or obtain a loan due to your criminal record. Then imagine, to make things worse, that alcohol is now legal, yet you are still saddled with this criminal history which leaves you no room for social advancement.

Imagine also that in spite of your lack of chances to obtain a job, that the very illegality you were arrested for not only becomes legal through legislation, but also fosters a burgeoning industry in the prohibited substance, primarily by nondiverse corporate entities and persons. Sounds a little bit like a nightmare, but that is exactly the scenario that is developing around cannabis and medical cannabis across the country.

To read the full text of this article written by Duane Morris attorney Neville M. Bilimoria, please visit the Duane Morris website.

February 20, 2019 by Brad A. Molotsky

New Jersey – One step closer to Adult Use, Recreational Marijuana Legalization

Earlier this week, Governor Murphy, Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-3rd District, and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, D-19th District, reached a tentative agreement on key pieces of adult use marijuana legislation, overcoming one of the key sticking points of how to tax the product sales, reaching a collective consensus of a $42 an ounce tax.

According to a recent Monmouth University Poll, 6 in 10 New Jersey adults support legalizing recreational marijuana. The February poll interviewed 604 New Jersey adults between Feb. 8 and 10, found that 62% of respondents favored legalizing small amounts of marijuana for personal use, compared to 32% of adults who said no to the prospect of legal marijuana in New Jersey.

68% of respondents said it would support the state economy, while 40% of respondents who support legal cannabis said it would boost tax revenue for New Jersey.
From an age perspective, 81% of millennials (i.e., ages 18 to 34), support legalizing marijuana, compared to 74% of adults ages 35 to 54, and 67% of adults 55 and older.

One of the other bones of contention that was overcome involved who will control the oversight commission. The current agreement would create a 5-member Cannabis Regulatory Commission to oversee the state’s marijuana industry, and Governor Murphy would be able to appoint 3 of the members without requiring Senate approval.

A earlier New Jersey marijuana legalization bill that was advanced by Assembly and Senate commitees in the fall of 2018 included a 12% sales tax. Under the Monday compromise, adult use marijuana purchasers will pay the same tax rate no matter what amount they purchased – meaning, $42 for an ounce, $21 for a half-ounce, $10.50 for a quarter-ounce or $5.25 for an eighth-ounce.

The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee vote was 7-4 in favor, while the Assembly Appropriations Committee voted 7-3 to advance the bill. If legislation is moved, the “Marijuana Legalization Act” would allow users 21 years old and up to possess up to an ounce of marijuana.

February 13, 2019February 25, 2025 by Duane Morris

Harborside Positions Itself for the Future with Big Merger

Add to the list of companies making major moves in terms of expansion the legendary name of Harborside. They recently announced a reverse merger with Canadian-based Lineage Grow Company.

Harborside is not the first United States-based company to use a reverse merger to take advantage of the more advanced Canadian markets, and they won’t be the last. “US-based cannabis companies are increasingly taking advantage of the robust Canadian capital markets,” Nanette Heide, co-chair of the private equity practice at Duane Morris LLP and the attorney who represented Harborside in the deal, told The Marijuana Times. “The transactions are somewhat complex in structure, but executed well can provide ready access to capital for growth and expansion.”

To read the full text of this article, please visit the Marijuana Times website.

January 19, 2019 by Brad A. Molotsky

Bill 420 – It’s “That” Time Again!

On 1-9-19, Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) introduced H.R. 420, the “Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act.” Blumenauer, the co-sponsor of the Rohrabacher–Blumenauer amendment, better known as the on-going appropriations provision that prohibits the Justice Department from spending federal funds to enforce federal law that is in conflict with state medical cannabis laws.

Proposed Bill 420 is a total overhaul of the federal government’s treatment of marijuana. Among other things, the bill:

1. Decriminalizes marijuana by removing it from the Controlled Substances Act;
2. Amends the Federal Alcohol Administration Act to enable the Secretary of the Treasury to issue permits to those who want to to manufacture, distribute, or sell marijuana;
3. Transfers jurisdiction from the DEA to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives;
4. Prohibits widespread advertising for marijuana; and
5. Grants to the FDA the same authority for marijuana as it has for alcohol.

Rep. Blumenauer noted: “Congress cannot continue to be out of touch with a movement that a growing majority of Americans support. It’s time to end this senseless prohibition.” In this vein, per a Pew Research Center study released last fall, nearly 66% of Americans support legalization at the federal level.

The new co-chairs of the 2019 bipartisan Congressional Cannabis Conference are Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) and Dave Joyce (R-OH), Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Don Young (R-AK).

January 9, 2019February 25, 2025 by Duane Morris

Meet the Duane Morris Lawyers Who Are Working on Some of the Biggest Deals in the Booming Marijuana Industry

With the rapid spread of marijuana legalization in the US, lawyers are discovering that the tangled web of regulations guiding the rapidly growing industry is a boon for business. …

There are several key reasons lawyers are attracted to the marijuana industry. For one, as cannabis companies grow, merge, and start getting the attention of Fortune 500 corporations as acquisition targets, they need more sophisticated advice on financing, tax planning, corporate structure, and M&A. …

That’s an opportunity to a select group of lawyers who have cut a trailblazing path into the industry. Once reluctant, some of the biggest law firms, like Duane Morris, Baker Botts and Dentons, are building out specialized cannabis practice groups as the industry continues to grow in profitability and complexity. …

Business Insider has pulled together a list of the top lawyers who’ve worked on the largest deals in the past year in the growing marijuana industry.

Duane Morris represented iAnthus, a US cannabis company, in its $640 million merger with MPX Bioceutical, also the first public-to-public transaction in the US cannabis industry. Further, the firm has advised investors on real-estate acquisitions.

For more information, visit the Business Insider website.

March 30, 2018 by Duane Morris

Access to Medicinal Marijuana in New Jersey Improves

In response to Executive Order No. 6, issued by New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, the New Jersey Department of Health (the “Department”) reviewed certain elements of New Jersey’s Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act and the implementation of the Medical Marijuana Program (“MMP”) (Executive Order 6 Report). …

The Department’s analysis resulted in the recommendation and approval of an immediate expansion to the MMP. The first stage of the expansion includes the addition of five conditions to the existing list of diagnoses for which medicinal marijuana can be prescribed. Patients with chronic pain related to Musculoskeletal Disorders, Migraines, Anxiety, chronic pain of Visceral Origin, and Tourette’s Syndrome are now eligible to participate in the MMP.

Read the full story on the Duane Morris Health Law Blog.

December 19, 2017December 19, 2017 by Joseph J. Machi

San Diego Dispensary Receives the First License to Sell Recreational Cannabis in California

On December 15, 2017, the California Bureau of Cannabis Control granted the first license for the sale of adult use marijuana in California to a San Diego dispensary. Torrey Holistics, located in Sorrento Valley, has sold medicinal marijuana since 2015. The dispensary also received a new license to continue the sale of medicinal marijuana.

The adult use retailer license received by Torrey Holistics is one of ten licenses, including one to another San Diego dispensary, Urbn Leaf in Linda Vista, for the sale of adult use marijuana granted by the California Bureau of Cannabis Control since the agency launched its online licensing system earlier in December. The licenses received by Torrey Holistics and the other medicinal and adult use retailers are temporary though. After 120 days, a permanent license must be obtained by the businesses. The licenses also do not go into effect until January 1, 2018.

For more information or questions on licensing of retailers of medicinal and adult use in California, please contact Joe Machi in our San Diego office or another member of the Duane Morris Cannabis Group.

December 14, 2017 by Joseph J. Machi

Takeaways from the Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act

While most of us were hitting the beaches over the summer, California lawmakers updated California’s regulations for the cannabis industry when they passed California Senate Bill 94, or the Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (“MAUCRSA” or “the Act”). MAUCRSA repeals the Medical Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act and amends the Adult Use of Marijuana Act, resulting in MAUCRSA regulating both adult use (i.e. recreational) cannabis businesses and medicinal cannabis businesses. For purposes of the Act, an adult is considered to be anyone 21 years of age or older. Bus. & Prof. Code § 26001.

While the Act provides a comprehensive regulatory framework for key segments of the cannabis industry, it also raises new questions and concerns that will require further clarification from, and coordination with, California lawmakers and agencies. The discussion below addresses some of the key provisions of the Act.

Continue reading “Takeaways from the Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act”

November 2, 2017November 3, 2017 by Paul P. Josephson

Appellate Ruling Confirms New Jersey’s Authority to Reschedule Marijuana, But Does Not Mandate Rescheduling

By Paul P. Josephson

In a rare 2-1 decision, New Jersey’s intermediate appeals court has overturned the decision of New Jersey’s Director of Consumer Affairs that he does not have the authority to reschedule marijuana from a Schedule I to Schedule IV substance. The dissent affords the state the right of appeal to the New Jersey Supreme Court, and the state quickly confirmed it will appeal.

Contrary to several early press reports, including Associated Press coverage reprinted nationally, the appellate judges did not require the Director to review Schedule I status. Continue reading “Appellate Ruling Confirms New Jersey’s Authority to Reschedule Marijuana, But Does Not Mandate Rescheduling”

November 1, 2017November 3, 2017 by Paul P. Josephson

DM Speaks on New Jersey Recreational Cannabis Bill

By Paul P. Josephson

In anticipation of electing a new governor in November 2017 and enactment of adult use (recreational) cannabis legislation in the first half of 2018, the New Jersey Cannabis Industry Association and industry thought leader Weedmaps sponsored the first education seminar on Cannabis Policy, Zoning & Licensing designed for New Jersey public officials on September 14 in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

Moderated by David O’Brien, Director, East Coast Government Relations, Weedmaps, the panel discussed what constitutes good local cannabis policy, what has worked and not worked in legalized jurisdictions, and how to create a responsible local marketplace for the cannabis industry while ensuring public safety, protecting public health, and deterring youth from use. Continue reading “DM Speaks on New Jersey Recreational Cannabis Bill”