Among the two most widely reported federal changes to cannabis regulation are the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) proposed regulation for the federal rescheduling of marijuana (the Proposed Rescheduling) and amendments to the...more
Despite the federal ban on the sale, use, and possession of cannabis in the U.S., in October, Georgia became the first U.S. state to allow pharmacies to sell low-dose tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) products. Pursuant to statutes...more
In November 2022, Colorado passed Proposition 122 (Prop 122), arguably one of the nation's first "legalize and regulate" natural psychedelic medicine laws, and people are already filled with romantic images of magic mushroom...more
Cannabis Testing Companies Facing State Regulatory Scrutiny in Nevada and Florida - FDA Appoints Former State Cannabis Policy Regulator as New Cannabis Advisor - DOJ Responds to Florida Lawsuit Challenging Federal...more
One might think that the recent uptick in the legalization of recreational marijuana usage would correlate with a decline in the arrests and seizures related to the leafy-green. According to recent data from the Drug...more
As previously blogged, Burns & Levinson hosted its third annual State of the Cannabis Industry Conference on October 23rd with over 200 attendees present. The conference began with its State of the Cannabis Industry Panel...more
Welcome back to The Week in Weed, your Friday look at what’s happening in the world of legalized marijuana. As is so often the case, the states were the big newsmakers this week. In Maine, the Office of Marijuana Policy...more
On September 25, 2019, the US House of Representatives ("House") passed, by a vote of 321 to 103, the Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act ("SAFE Banking Act"), bipartisan legislation designed to secure and regulate...more
Given the United States’ current political climate, bi-partisan unity has become a seemingly rare occurrence, especially in the country’s highest court. That’s what makes the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Timbs v....more
ON OCTOBER 2, 2012, kidnappers robbed and abducted a marijuana dispensary owner from his Newport Beach home. They then drove him to the Mojave Desert where they tortured him and demanded that he reveal where he had buried his...more
As discussed in our January 5th blog post, the Cole Memorandum was rescinded by Attorney General Jeff Sessions on January 4th of this year. The Cole Memorandum had served to formally announce the DOJ’s policy that it would...more
Just days after the sale of recreational cannabis became legal in California, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a new policy regarding cannabis-related activities that is causing confusion for local governments — and...more
Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a one-page memorandum on January 4, 2018 (the “Sessions Memo”) rescinding both the Cole and Ogden Memoranda which essentially established a Department of Justice (“DOJ”) prosecutorial...more
• The marijuana industry that was expected to generate roughly $40 billion in economic impact nationwide by 2021 is at a crossroads given a recent move by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions to eliminate certain protections...more
On January 4, 2018, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded, effective immediately, previous enforcement priorities of the Department of Justice (DOJ) on marijuana, including the Cole Memo. The move creates uncertainty...more
While marijuana is legal for medical and, in some instances recreational, use under the laws of 29 states plus the District of Columbia, under federal law it remains illegal....more
Attorney General Sessions rescinded, effective January 4, 2018, previous enforcement priorities of the DOJ related to marijuana – including the Cole Memo. The Sessions Memo dictates that federal prosecutors should follow the...more
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions yesterday rescinded the Cole Memorandum, which had directed the federal justice department to de-prioritize the prosecution of federal marijuana laws in states where the use of marijuana...more
All eyes in the medical cannabis industry are watching a December deadline faced by Congress. A short-term funding deal signed into law on September 8 by President Donald Trump not only kept the government running, it also...more
Justice Department has options to crack down, but may galvanize the push for even wider legalization - In statements that were perhaps inevitable but nonetheless surprising to the cannabis industry, White House Press...more