Cannabis

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Buying a cannabis business does not occur in a matter of days, and transactions fall apart for a variety of reasons, as we discussed in Part 1 of this blog series focused on the buy-side of a cannabis M&A transaction. In Part 2, we focused on the regulatory environment, discussing concepts that first-time buyers and their attorneys should be aware of. In Part 3, we looked into things to consider when hiring your…
Lately, in my review of certain cannabis transactional agreements like cannabis intellectual property (IP) licensing agreements, manufacturing agreements, and distribution agreements, I’m seeing a really high number of statements of work (SOWs) attached. I’m not opposed to SOWs when they make sense. In cannabis though, nine times out of ten, a SOW model isn’t necessary, overcomplicates the parties’ performance, and creates conflicts between agreements. I think the reason I’m seeing a lot of SOW models…
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Welcome to our weekly roundup of CBD and hemp-related legal and regulatory news: CBD Iowa Court of Appeals upholds state’s view of CBD as controlled substance The Iowa Appeals Court sided with the Marion Civil Service Commission, saying Sarah Hyatt was appropriately terminated from her job as a dispatcher at the Marion Police Department for possessing and consuming CBD tincture oil at work, sleeping while on break and being untruthful during a subsequent investigation into…
On Wednesday, July 14, Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer (NY), Senator Cory Booker (NJ), and Senator Ron Wyden (OR) introduced a draft bill to decriminalize marijuana at the federal level. The draft discussion of the legislation, named the Cannabis Administration & Opportunity Act (the “Bill”), opens by recognizing the disparate impact of the War on Drugs on people of color and states that goal of the Bill is to “end the decades of harm inflicted…
In a prior post, we discussed the federal anti-kickback statute (the “AKS”) and the implications for ketamine clinics. In short, the federal AKS prohibits anyone from paying or receiving anything of value for the referral of patients where a federal government healthcare payment program is the payor (e.g., Medicare, Medicaid, VA, etc.). 42 U.S.C. § 1320a–7b. While there are many safe harbors that can apply in these situations, one of the fundamental questions is…
As the country moves toward decriminalizing and even legalizing marijuana, federal courts largely remain closed to commercial disputes involving marijuana by operation of the illegality defense.  We’ve written about the defense on several occasions, see here and here. Briefly, the illegality defense is an affirmative defense pleaded by a defendant who has been sued for breach of contract or other related business torts. It applies in contexts other than marijuana to be sure but…