California cannabis lawyer

October 27, 2019

Public Housing Tenants Face Pot Penalties – Even Where It’s Legal

Marijuana is legal in some form in 33 states plus Washington, D.C., but pot-related penalties still abound for those who are students, employees, businesses and public housing residents. Even in places like California where people are unequivocally allowed under state law to buy, sell and consume the drug for recreational purposes, those living in subsidized public housing or who use Section 8 vouchers face eviction if they test positive for the drug – even if they are prescribed it for medical reasons. marijuana eviction lawyer

Housing authority officials cite the conflict between state and federal law, saying they jeopardize their access to much-needed federal dollars if they allow a Schedule I narcotic to be used in taxpayer-funded housing or by those receiving assistance. However, what our Los Angeles marijuana lawyers see is yet another example of double standards when it comes to marijuana law and regulation enforcement – with people of color in low-income communities facing particular adverse consequences. Coincidentally, this is the same population disproportionately impacted by the failed, decades-long War on Drugs.

Officials with the Department of U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) have said they do want “sensible” regulation that might legally permit medical marijuana use by public housing tenants, but so far there is no concrete proposal on the table. Continue reading

October 14, 2019

What to Make of the Latest Marijuana Industry Layoffs

By Cannabis Law Group

Those following cannabis industry trends in recent months may be troubled by a spate of layoffs announced at half a dozen sizable marijuana businesses across the country. Some speculated this might be indicative of looming financial woes on the horizon for the entire industry. marijuana business lawyer

However, our Los Angeles cannabis lawyers prefer to look at these layoffs on a case-by-case basis. There are undoubtedly some lessons to be gleaned about business planning and management, but ultimately the same kind that are relevant to entrepreneurs in any market.

Marijuana agriculture, manufacturing, processing, retail, tech and quality control sectors all comprise a new and evolving industry. Companies that don’t properly plan from the beginning phases may soon find themselves overwhelmed, overstaffed and prime for failure.

The truth of the matter is cannabis isn’t a veritable gold mine. Companies must implement careful strategy, smart investment and measured growth. Even with the increasingly high demand for the plant and derivative products, there are a fair number of marijuana businesses that simply aren’t making the money they need to survive, let alone thrive. Continue reading

June 21, 2019

Los Angeles Marijuana Industry: Is Anybody Happy Here?

By Cannabis Law Group

The legal market for marijuana sales in Los Angeles has become something of a Wild West free-for-all that has left very few feeling satisfied: Government officials, legal cannabis companies, law enforcement and those trying to edge their way into the local market. Los Angeles cannabis business attorney

Law enforcement say it’s like playing whack-a-mole, city officials say they’re overwhelmed, legal businesses planning to sue the city and those operating on the fringes without a legal license say they’re only doing what they’ve been doing for years, but operating on the fringe, thanks to being shut out by regulators.

The director of the Los Angeles Department of Cannabis Regulation cracked a joke when asked what she’d do if given an unlimited staff and budget – doing her best Oprah Winfrey impression while opining that, “You get a license! You get a license!” (And no one would be arrested.) This spurred some laughter and applause from those listening at the retreat in Mendocino County where she spoke, but Los Angeles marijuana business lawyers know: Most of us aren’t laughing. Continue reading

March 29, 2019

Native Tribes: State Shut Us Out of Legal California Cannabis Market

By Cannabis Law Group

Native American tribes allege California’s cannabis market since Proposition 64 effectively excluded them by making no provision to allow sales of the plant grown on reservations. California cannabis attorney

Reservations are considered legally-protected sovereign nations with little if any oversight by state or federal authorities, and thus marijuana cultivation and sales has never been regulated by outside entities. That has not changed. However, as a California Bureau of Cannabis Control spokesman explained, while tribes are free to do as they wish with cannabis while on the reservation itself, they cannot enter the legal cannabis market without proper state permitting and licensing.

As Los Angeles marijuana lawyers can explain, that would mean reservation-based cannabis farmers wanting to secure a place in the legal market would, like all others, be held to state and local regulations. Tribes vying for an in to the lucrative California cannabis market because they can’t sell their product beyond tribal land unless it’s to other tribes.

Current Cannabis Operations on Tribal Land in California

August 15, 2017

American Legion Joins the Cannabis Cause to Improve Veterans’ Lives

By Cannabis Law Group

The Trump Administration’s anti-marijuana policies adversely affect thousands of Americans who rely on the medicinal benefits of cannabis to relieve various forms of suffering. There is, perhaps, no more potent illustration of the harm these policies cause than in the military veteran community. medical marijuana lawyer

The American military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan have created a mental health crisis of unprecedented proportions within the veterans’ community. Post traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injuries, night terrors, depression, suicide, opioid addictions and other symptoms are increasingly prevalent. According to the National Alliance for Mental Health, nearly one in four active service members shows signs of a mental health condition. The Veterans Administration reports that, in 2014, an average of twenty veterans died every day from suicide. Six out of these twenty daily deaths were veterans who had accessed VA services in an attempt to get help. Continue reading

October 20, 2016

Justin Beiber Speaks out Against Pharmaceutical Industry for Opposing Medical Marijuana

By Cannabis Law Group

Despite the ever increasing amount of evidence that cannabis is a power medicine that has helped millions of people with medical conditions ranging from anxiety to cancer, there are those who still refuse to admit that it is actually medicine and not just a recreational drug. The question is why these people and companies refuse to admit this simple fact, and the answer may have a lot of do with money.

cash While there is no question that the medical marijuana industry is very profitable as it is actually quickly becoming a billion-dollar industry, the problem for some is who is making money and who is not. The drug companies are making billions of dollars each year on sales of their pharmaceutical products, but they are not making much money from medical marijuana other than through producing some synthetic marijuana pills such as Marinol. Continue reading

October 10, 2016

The Potential Dangers in Financing a Medical Marijuana Business in Los Angeles

By Cannabis Law Group

A recent news article from Above the Law takes a look at some of the risk associated with funding a medical marijuana business in Los Angeles or other parts of California. As the medical marijuana business grows and continue to grow, there are more and more companies and individual investors who are interested in getting in on their share of the profits which are approaching $1 billion by some estimates.

Money in the form of many large bills

However, as these investors are looking to get on board, they are discovering some of the pitfalls that can await them due to still existing legal constraints on the medical marijuana industry. This is true even with all of the new regulations and allowances put in place by the Medical Cannabis Regulation Safety Act (MCRSA). There is also much speculation about what challenges these new and prospective investors may face if recreational marijuana is legalized by Proposition 64 this November. It should be noted that many in the industry predict that Proposition 64 will be voted into law this next election as it has widespread support among the people of California. Continue reading

October 8, 2016

Additional Legal Protections for Cannabis Extract Makers

By Cannabis Law Group

Hash oil is a very powerful medicine that is rendered from medical cannabis using a process that includes one or more harsh chemicals. The marijuana plant material is turned into hash oil through a process known as solvent extraction. This involves filtering and evaporating a solvent to create the thick resinous liquid oil.

1398224079gyj36 The process involves using chemicals such as butane, methanol, chloroform, ether, ethanol, or naphtha. Due to the fact that butane is often the preferred chemical for rendering hash oil, the finished product is often called butane hash oil (BHO) and the producers of BHO are commonly referred to as butane hash blasters. Continue reading

September 9, 2016

Will Marijuana Help Elect Clinton?

By Cannabis Law Group

In what has turned out to be a contentious and unusual election, Democrats are hoping they can edge out the Republican nominee in the White House bid with an issue that has gained a groundswell of support: Marijuana.

While the legalization of medical marijuana has gained a significant amount of bipartisan support, conservatives are less likely than liberals to support it and that gap is even greater when the topic is legalization of recreational marijuana.

Democrats are hoping that even if their top candidate doesn’t ignite voters, maybe the marijuana issue will. It’s true that in past presidential elections, “down-ballot races” – that is, those issues and offices that were farther down the ballot from the presidential nominee – have turned the tide in a number of key states. For example, the proposed same-sex marriage ban helped President George W. Bush snag reelection in 2004. And then in 2012, voters in Colorado were swayed to vote for President Barack Obama at the same time they voted to legalize recreational marijuana. Continue reading