Legal Issues

The Michigan Supreme Court has ruled that the odor of cannabis alone is insufficient probable cause for police to conduct a vehicle search.

In a recent ruling, a Minnesota judge ordered officials to proceed with the social equity cannabis pre-licensing lottery that the state previously abandoned amid multiple lawsuits.

A Florida appeals court has tossed a drug-trafficking conviction against a man who was caught carrying 50 vacuum-sealed bags of a “leafy green” substance officials believed to be cannabis, after the man argued that he believed the substance was hemp when he bought it.

The California state Supreme Court has de-published a prior ruling that said cannabis was illegal in the state due to federal law, meaning it can no longer be used as a legal precedent for other cases.

The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals has voided four more temporary restraining orders on the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission concerning its medical cannabis licensing actions.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed charges against the former CFO of Acreage Holdings for allegedly lying to Acreage’s auditor and falsifying the company’s accounting records.

A California Superior Court judge has ruled that neighbors within a one-mile radius of a cannabis greenhouse in Carpinteria Valley can collectively seek damages for an unpleasant cannabis odor wafting onto their properties.

An Alabama court has overturned the temporary restraining order blocking medical cannabis licenses in the state, which have been on hold since lawsuits brought the industry’s launch to a halt in 2023.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul included provisions allowing police to use the odor of cannabis as evidence that a person is driving while impaired in her annual executive budget.

Russian authorities have released Kalob Byers, the 28-year-old American who was arrested in early February for carrying cannabis-infused gummies into the country.

A licensed cannabis cultivator in Western Massachusetts is suing a neighboring produce farm, alleging that repeated instances of “pesticide overspray” ruined the neighboring cannabis company’s crops for years, amounting to $17 million in damages.

A former executive vice president at Chicago-based cannabis company Verano was recently indicted in federal court for insider trading.

Minnesota officials fined four businesses $10,000 each last year in civil penalties related to illegal cannabis.

A New York Supreme Court Judge has ruled that the New York City Sheriff’s Office and the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) must stop conducting warrantless raids on unlicensed cannabis shops.

Hightimes Holding Corp. chairman Adam Levin has agreed to plead guilty to securities fraud charges involving undisclosed payments to promote the company’s stock. According to the charges, Levin participated in a scheme to pay over $150,000 to an investment newsletter analyst who promoted the stock without disclosing the compensation.

The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has reaffirmed that the federal prosecution of Patrick Darnell Daniels Jr. for illegally possessing a firearm while having also consumed cannabis was a violation of his Second Amendment rights.

Cannabis reform proponents have again requested the removal of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) from the rescheduling hearing coming later this month, citing new evidence the agency might seek to “subvert the process” and “thwart” the rescheduling process.

The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals confirmed that Alabama regulators had “properly exercised” their power when rescinding medical cannabis licenses awarded under the state’s initial cannabis licensing round.

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld a judge’s ruling that the state can prohibit a state-registered cannabis patient from participating in the medical cannabis program if they are on probation.

A Florida judge this week ruled in favor of a paramedic who sued his former employer for wrongful termination after being fired for testing positive for THC on a random drug test, despite being a registered cannabis patient with a state-issued medical ID.

One of the plaintiffs in the recently dismissed lawsuit that aimed to invalidate the petitions behind Nebraska’s successful medical cannabis legalization effort has filed another suit seeking to block the reforms.

A federal appeals court has upheld Mississippi’s ban on advertising medical cannabis products, concluding that the restriction does not violate the First Amendment.

The Nebraska Attorney General’s Office appears to be setting up to appeal the recent dismissal of a lawsuit brought against two successful medical cannabis initiatives that state voters overwhelmingly approved last month.