On May 20, 2020, Marijuana Moment reported on a new development on the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) position on hemp-derived cannabidiol (Hemp CBD). The article centers on the following tweet from the FDA: Summitt Labs Issues Voluntary Nationwide Recall of KORE ORGANIC Watermelon CBD Oil Due to High Lead Results https://t.co/y2oklEZzx4 pic.twitter.com/1SlB9mnhLI — U.S. […]

In our ongoing coverage of trademark litigation in the cannabis space, we now have a lawsuit filed by National Grange against the Oregon-based Hemp Grange. The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry (or the National Grange) is the nation’s oldest agricultural fraternal organization. The National Grange is a “family, community organization with […]

Several months I wrote an article about CBD and false advertising under the Lanham Act and noted an important case on the docket of the U.S. Supreme Court concerning damages in trademark cases, Romag Fasteners, Inc. v. Fossil, Inc. (Supreme Court Docket No. 18-1233).  As you may recall, the Lanham Act, also known as the […]

A few weeks ago, I wrote a post called “Cannabis Business Litigation: What’s the Point of a Demand Letter?” If you didn’t read that post, the gist is that demand letters can sometimes spur early settlement talks or the correction of improper conduct and avoid costly litigation or arbitration. Today, I want to talk about […]

The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (“2018 Farm Bill”) legalized hemp by removing the crop and its derivatives from the definition of marijuana under the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”) and by providing a detailed framework for the cultivation of hemp. The 2018 Farm Bill gives the US Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) regulatory authority over hemp […]

On January 21, 2020, a man in Washington State was diagnosed with the novel coronavirus after he traveled to China. This was the first confirmed case in the United States. A little over a month later, on February 29, a man in Washington died from what we were now calling COVID-19. This was the first […]

We have been tracking hemp-related litigation for some time. We’ve written about disputes between hemp growers and purchasers, seizures of hemp by law enforcement, consumer class action lawsuits, bankruptcy and other business disputes. Here are just a few of those articles: Oregon Hemp Litigation: New Cases Demonstrate the Continued Importance of Due Diligence Oregon Hemp-CBD […]

On May 14, 2020, the three California cannabis agencies, the Bureau of Cannabis Control, Department of Food and Agriculture CalCannabis Division, and Department of Public Health’s Manufactured Cannabis Safety Branch announced that licensed cannabis businesses with “licenses expiring between now through June 30, 2020 may request 60-day deferrals of their license fee payments.” The announcement […]

Last year, we helped a client take a hard look at an issue related to cannabis and the World Trade Organization (WTO). It was a fascinating project and WTO lawyers took preliminary interest in the issue. We were told that cannabis had not come before the WTO in any formal or informal context to that […]

Anyone who knows me knows that I really enjoy sports of all kinds. I was a college soccer player and played competitive club soccer in Florida before that from the age of 7 onward (and I now play in an adult co-ed league in Los Angeles). Unfortunately, COVID-19 has put the damper on watching live […]