Jihee Ahn

Jihee is an experienced complex commercial litigator in Harris Bricken’s Portland and Los Angeles offices. She represents clients in business, intellectual property, and real estate matters. Having worked extensively in both federal and state courts, Jihee advises her clients from case intake through arbitration and trial.

ada ucra cannabis litigation

California Cannabis Retailer Faces Costly ADA and UCRA Claims

A recent lawsuit filed in California federal court serves as a good reminder to all our readers that it’s so important to be mindful of Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (the “ADA”). For the past several years, we’ve seen a steady flow of cases filed against cannabis companies for their alleged failures

cannabis stock promotion scheme

Defendants Move to Dismiss SEC’s Stock Promotion Scheme Lawsuit

Last November, I wrote this post about a recent case filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission naming cannabis industry players for an alleged stock promotion scheme (or, as some call them, anti-touting violations). Last month, the primary individual defendant, Jonathan Mikula, filed a Motion to Dismiss the claims against him. The other individual defendant,

litigation hold

Cannabis Litigation: The Importance of Litigation Holds

We regularly cover litigation on the blog, but today we’re going to cover how to prepare for cannabis litigation that may or may not come. And while it’s always important to have effective systems in place, it becomes even more paramount when our clients realize how involved the discovery process is in the American litigation

rico

Ninth Circuit Affirms Dismissal of RICO Claims Relating to Cannabis

Well, it looks like cannabis RICO lawsuits are not going to happen any time soon. As an update to this post I wrote in 2020, the Ninth Circuit has just affirmed the dismissal of two RICO claims brought by a cannabis business owner. Background of Shulman v. Kaplan As a quick recap, Plaintiff Francine Shulman

trademark infringement

Edible Arrangements v. Green Thumb Industries: Voluntary Dismissal, For Now

We regularly cover intellectual property disputes on the blog, and the Edible Arrangements v. Green Thumb Industries trademark infringement case is one we covered two years ago when filed. Since then, this case appears to have been moderately active, with the parties engaging in the usual discovery and related motion practice. However, things did take

safe banking act

Will the Senate Ever Do Anything with the SAFE Banking Act?

As we’ve written about over the past several years, there have been consistent rallying cries for common-sense banking reform for the cannabis industry. The SAFE Banking Act, which would allow federally regulated financial institutions to work with state-legal cannabis businesses, has been passed by the U.S. House of Representatives a whopping seven times. However, the

california cannabis false advertising

California Cannabis Company Hit With False Advertising Claims

We’ve anticipated this for a while, but a recent lawsuit indicates that certain marijuana company mislabeling antics are getting called out, regarding false advertising. One recent lawsuit heralds a potential new wave of litigation. The lawsuit The plaintiffs are two California consumers who sued a California marijuana company, DreamFields Brands, Inc. and Med for America

cannabis arbitration

Cannabis Arbitration Provisions: the Injunctive Relief Carve-Out

We’ve written plenty about cannabis arbitrations before, and why these proceedings may make more sense for your situation (see links at the bottom of this post!). But when you need fast, injunctive relief, a prior agreement to arbitrate can potentially be disastrous. Arbitration is much slower than other litigation to get started — even though

stock promotion scheme

SEC Targets Cannabis Industry Stock Promotion Scheme

It looks like the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has its eye on the cannabis industry and specifically stock promotion schemes. Last month, the Commission announced charges against two cannabis companies and associated individuals for their involvement in “a fraudulent scheme to promote the securities.” The companies at issue are Elegance Brands Inc., Emerald Health

customs

Court of International Trade OKs “Drug Paraphernalia” Import to Washington

The U.S. Court of International Trade (“CIT”) issued a recent opinion that indicates the import or export of “drug paraphernalia” to or from states where cannabis is legal represents an exception to the federal ban imposed by the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”). Under 21 U.S.C. § 863(d), “drug paraphernalia” is broadly defined as: any equipment,