Category: Legal

As companies adopt response plans to protect against coronavirus, some employees may push back, wondering if skipping that next in-person meeting could really make a difference. Two recent stories illustrate that one meeting can matter. Consider the difficult story of one biotech firm. About 175 of its managers from around the…

As state regulators take measures to protect residents against vape-related illnesses, governmental authorities are increasingly calling upon cannabis operators to disclose the “secret sauce” in their products intended for vaporization. Such transparency will serve to inform consumers, while enabling authorities to track the ingredients and additives included in vape products…

Compliance is more than defensive protection; it is affirmatively necessary to progress as a viable business. Internal controls to prevent and detect misconduct are attractive to investors and to merger and acquisition partners. Maneuvering companies without compliance “seatbelts” gets increasingly reckless as companies advance beyond the startup phase. If you…

The marijuana industry is quickly becoming big business. In 2019, analysts estimated that marijuana retail sales in the U.S. surpassed $13 billion. This explosive growth has resulted in a tremendous increase in the number of jobs within the marijuana industry. Studies project there will be at least 330,000 jobs in…

An era of consumer lawsuits alleging false advertising and unfair competition against producers of cannabis-derived products has begun. As the Food and Drug Administration, Federal Trade Commission and consumers increase scrutiny on marketing claims, consumer class actions threaten to derail growing consumer confidence and the normalization of cannabis products. Among…

The cannabis industry is growing faster than federal and state laws can keep up. While the gap between regulation and reality persists, entrepreneurs are investing time and capital developing valuable business information. However, the disparity between federal law and the law in those states that have legalized cannabis can leave…

On January 1, 2020, Illinois became the 11th state to legalize the recreational use of cannabis. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, more than 495,000 transactions occurred in the first 12 days of recreational sales, resulting in nearly $20 million in sales. With such a positive reaction to the new, emerging…

You have worked hard to build your cannabis company and have just started to gain traction. Now you are sitting across the table from an investor who is offering to provide growth capital. You have studied the voluminous press coverage on the range of financing options considered by cannabis investors,…

Cannabis capital markets appear to be drying up. Headlines once dominated by successful capital raises and expensive strategic acquisitions are now consumed with reports of an apparent crash, involving dwindling stock prices, unrealistic revenue targets, deals falling apart and mass layoffs. The California-based cannabis retail behemoth MedMen Enterprises Inc. (OTC:MMNFF)…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a press release on November 25 concerning its recent enforcement actions and a regulatory decision concerning products that contain CBD. The warning letters follow FDA’s trend of focusing its CBD product enforcement on unapproved drug claims. The regulatory decision stated in the press release…