As of recent data released by the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM), New York now has 65 adult-use and delivery licenses operational, with two adult-use stores being approved earlier this month. While the first date of...more
On January 17, 2024, the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission (“CCC”) released the long-awaited model host community agreement (“Model HCA”) for public comment. This comes just over two months from the CCC’s new...more
As our world strives to become paperless, nearly all businesses, regardless of industry need to offer payment processing solutions other than cash to keep up with customer demands and expectations. The cannabis industry is no...more
8/15/2023
/ Agribusiness ,
Cannabis Products ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Dispensaries ,
Financial Institutions ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Cultivation ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Payment Processors ,
Payment Systems ,
Recreational Use
What is a SaaS agreement? “SaaS” stands for Software as a Service. SaaS agreements are legal contracts for software licensing of software applications or services managed by or for the SaaS provider and shared by multiple...more
In just about one month from its release date to the public, Maryland’s proposed adult-use cannabis regulations, HBO556, have received rumblings of discontent and concern from interested industry participants. Following the...more
Are supply contracts a thing of the past in the cannabis market? As many cannabis markets continue to develop state to state — whether it be veteran markets adjusting to changes in consolidation or emerging markets expending...more
Over the past few years, August has become a popular month for cannabis industry reform in Massachusetts....more
Earlier this week, Burns & Levinson’s attorneys Lauren Medeiros Forster and Gustav Stickley V (Gus) spoke on a panel hosted by the Law Firm Alliance about their experiences practicing law in the red-hot cannabis industry....more
4/7/2022
/ Cannabis Products ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Dispensaries ,
Law Firm Associates ,
Law Firm Partners ,
Marijuana Cultivation ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Recreational Use ,
State and Local Government ,
Young Lawyers
Special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), or “blank check” companies, have been one of the most popular investments and investment vehicles over the past year – an alarming 308 SPACs have gone public since the start of...more
On February 3, 2021, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) heard a case that raised questions to a grievance cannabis operators in the Commonwealth have been grueling over for years. In the case of Mederi Inc. v....more
In our first installment of this two-part “mini-series” on finders, we outlined the Securities and Exchange Commission’s proposed conditional exemption (“Proposed Exemption”) to permit unregistered brokers – or “finders” – to...more
In an industry already rife with significant regulatory complexities, cannabis issuers face another challenge familiar to many small and emerging businesses raising capital: The regulatory minefield posed by hiring...more
On October 29, 2020, Burns & Levinson hosted its Fourth Annual State of the Cannabis Industry Conference, with nearly 200 attendees present – this year in a virtual setting. The conference featured a panel of various hemp &...more
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACS) have had increased activity in the cannabis and hemp/CBD industries over the past year. Presently, these “blank check companies” have raised more than $3 billion. Investors and...more
The Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) assembled on July 20, 2020, to approve draft changes to the cannabis adult-use, medical-use, and colocated operator regulations. A Virtual Public Hearing on the draft regulations was held...more
On May 18th, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker announced the Commonwealth’s four-phase roadmap (the “Plan”) to reopening business operations in the Commonwealth. Order Implementing a Phased Reopening of Workplaces and...more
On January 13, 2020, Representative Collin Peterson, the Chairman of the House Agricultural Committee, introduced a new bipartisan bill, H.R.5587 (Bill 5587), in the U.S. House of Representatives that would potentially...more
2/7/2020
/ Cannabidiol (CBD) oil ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Farm Bill ,
FDA Warning Letters ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Health Claims ,
Hemp ,
Hemp Cultivation ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Public Health Service Act ,
USDA
As previously blogged last week, Burns & Levinson hosted its third annual State of the Cannabis Industry Conference on October 23rd, with over 200 attendees present. The conference featured a keynote address by Dr. Karen...more
Over the past seven months, and just as recently as three weeks ago, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has released several warning letters to businesses selling CBD products. These letters concern the FTC’s review of...more
10/9/2019
/ Cannabidiol (CBD) oil ,
Cannabis Products ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Health Claims ,
Hemp ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Marketing ,
Retail Market ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
Warning Letters
On Thursday, July 25, 2019, the Senate Agriculture Committee held a hearing before federal regulatory agencies in the agriculture, public health and pesticides space concerning efforts to implement the legalization of hemp....more
8/13/2019
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Cannabidiol (CBD) oil ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Farm Bill ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Hemp ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Cultivation ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
USDA
Early this month, New Jersey enacted new workplace protections for authorized medical cannabis users -
Under the new regulations, employers are prohibited from taking an adverse employment action against an existing or...more
7/25/2019
/ Adverse Employment Action ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Drug Testing ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Marijuana ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Workplace Safety ,
Zero Tolerance Policies
Retail sales of medical and recreational marijuana in the U.S. have been projected to reach $12 billion by the end of 2019. In Massachusetts, the total sale of recreational marijuana have topped $100 million last month...more