Category: April 2021

After a long interlude (caused primarily by government focus turning to the COVID-19 pandemic and other emergent priorities), a new MOPH notification was published in the Government Gazette on December 14, 2020, expanding the delisting of cannabis from the Narcotics Act to include nearly all parts of cannabis and hemp plants, as detailed in the table below.

In the past, there has been great uncertainty among buyers and consumers in Germany regarding the distribution of hemp tea and other cannabis based products. This uncertainty stems from the somewhat ambiguous legal framework and corresponding case law. Therefore, many industry representatives hoped that the German Federal Court of Justice (“BGH”) would provide more clarity in its recent decision of March 24, 2021. Therein the BGH overturned a decision of the Regional Court of Braunschweig in favor of the defendants, which were accused of trafficking narcotics

Florida law does not explicitly prohibit a medical marijuana card holder from obtaining a concealed weapons and firearms license. It also does not prohibit a concealed weapons licensee from obtaining a medical marijuana card. Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services Nikki Fried has gone on record contending that Florida law allows one to simultaneously hold both. In 2019, Fried explained, “I have both [a concealed weapons permit and medical marijuana card]. So I want to make that very clear, that I will not be taking anybody’s concealed weapons permit or not renewing them. I see no conflict between the two.”[1] The Florida Department of Agriculture, however, will only issue a firearms license if the applicant is not prohibited from purchasing or possessing a firearm by any other provision of Florida or federal law.[2]

The House of Representatives (Cámara de Diputados) of Mexico on March 10, 2021, voted to approve the Federal Law for Cannabis Regulation (Ley Federal para la Regulación del Cannabis), a bill that would legalize and (to some extent) decriminalize the recreational use of cannabis.

In the quest to become GMP compliant, design and flow of your manufacturing facility are critical. Mistakes in the design phase will cost money and eventual time loss, so taking this step seriously and planning to the end for every detail must be a top priority. It’s not enough for an architect to draw out what is needed; other factors, such as the flow of people and product should be considered at every stage of designing your facility. The entire process should be created in such a way to avoid cross contamination and move product and people throughout the facility as safely as possible.

On 20 April 2020, the Lebanese Parliament passed a law permitting the cultivation, trade, research, and use of medical cannabis. The passing of the law by Lebanon creates an opportunity for leading medical cannabis companies globally to enter the Lebanese market. There are six classes of license applicants including foreign companies licensed in their home jurisdiction. Other opportunities that foreign investors are surveying are partnerships and associations with farmers and enterprises in Lebanon. In this article, we detail information regarding foreign investment in Lebanon that is a consideration for foreign investors interested in the medical cannabis industry in Lebanon.

Whether derived from marijuana or hemp, FDA considers CBD products to be drugs if intended for use (including advertisements) in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention of disease and/or intended to affect the structure or any function of the body. FDA considers products containing CBD marketed as animal food to be adulterated animal foods and are therefore prohibited pursuant to Section 301(II) of the FD&C Act, 21 U.S.C. 331(II), since the FDA found no evidence that the substance was marketed in food before the drug was approved (has not been approved for use in animals), or before the substantial clinical investigations involving the drug has been instituted. FDA would not consider CBD to be a “food additive” since it has not been generally recognized as safe (GRAS) among qualified experts under the conditions of its intended use, or unless the substance meets a listed exception.

In a recent Advice Response Memo, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) indicated that employees of a cannabis growing operation were exempt from the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), meaning that the employees were not entitled to the NLRA’s protections. The employees had alleged that the cannabis operation interfered with their attempts to unionize, but the NLRB advised that the two workers fell under the NLRA’s agricultural workers exemption. Therefore, the employees’ claims were not within the NLRB’s jurisdiction.

The Code Sections provided below may or may not be useful to people looking for property in Portland, Oregon, for the location of OLCC Marijuana Retail Licenses.

The HEMP Act would make several significant changes to current law, including:

New Mexico has recently followed the likes of Arizona, New Jersey, Virginia, and New York in becoming the 17th state to legalize adult use cannabis. Indeed, New Mexico became the second state in 24 hours to legalize adult use cannabis, following New York’s efforts the day before. Specifically, HB 2, passed the Senate and House by a vote of 22-15 and 38-32 respectively.

As the dust continues to settle on New Jersey’s legalization and decriminalization of cannabis, employers should take note of the laws’ significant employment implications. While forthcoming regulations will better define the contours of the new requirements, below are the most pressing takeaways for New Jersey employers.