Legal Affairs
Michigan Cannabis Trade Group Challenges New 24% Wholesale Tax in Court
LANSING – Yesterday, hours after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer put her signature on Michigan's latest state budget, the Michigan Cannabis Industry Association moved swiftly to court, filing suit to block a fresh 24% excise tax on ...
NY Cannabis Market Posts Record August Sales, OCM Reports
NEW YORK – New York dispensaries rang up $214.4 million in legal Cannabis sales in August, the highest total since the program's start nearly three years ago, according to the state's Office of Cannabis Management. ...
New National Survey Highlights Cannabis Engagement Rise, Backing Broader Access and Uniform Legal Framework
LOS ANGELES – A fresh national survey underscores Cannabis's deepening foothold in American life, with 31% of adults reporting use within the last six months. Released last month, the MRI-Simmons 2025 National Cannabis Study also ...
Agrify Corp Rebrands to RYTHM Inc Following $50M Green Thumb Brands Portfolio Acquisition
CHICAGO – Agrify Corporation has acquired a portfolio of intellectual property from Green Thumb Industries (GTI) for $50 million, including cannabis brands like RYTHM, Dogwalkers, Beboe, incredibles, &Shine, Doctor Solomon’s, Good Green, and Señorita. Concurrently, ...
DPA Petition Urges Trump to Fully Deschedule Cannabis Amid Rescheduling Discussions
LOS ANGELES – The Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) has launched a petition urging the Trump administration to remove Cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), arguing that a proposed shift to Schedule III fails to ...
Ibogaine Gains Spotlight as Former House Speaker Calls for Wider Access
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Newt Gingrich, a Former House Speaker, has drawn attention to ibogaine, a psychedelic compound derived from the African iboga shrub, calling it a potential game-changer for treating addiction, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), ...
Colombian President Pushing Congress for Swift Action on Full Cannabis Legalization
BOGOTÁ – Colombia's House of Representatives First Committee has passed a bill to legalize adult-use Cannabis, marking an early win for reformers in a country long at the center of global drug policy debates. Sponsored ...
Michigan Cannabis Trade Group Challenges New 24% Wholesale Tax in Court
LANSING – Yesterday, hours after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer put her signature on Michigan's latest state budget, the Michigan Cannabis Industry Association moved swiftly to court, filing suit to block a fresh 24% excise tax on ...
NY Cannabis Market Posts Record August Sales, OCM Reports
NEW YORK – New York dispensaries rang up $214.4 million in legal Cannabis sales in August, the highest total since the program's start nearly three years ago, according to the state's Office of Cannabis Management. ...
New National Survey Highlights Cannabis Engagement Rise, Backing Broader Access and Uniform Legal Framework
LOS ANGELES – A fresh national survey underscores Cannabis's deepening foothold in American life, with 31% of adults reporting use within the last six months. Released last month, the MRI-Simmons 2025 National Cannabis Study also ...
California’s Psychedelic Dilemma: Governor Newsom’s Tightrope Walk on SB58
LOS ANGELES— Six decades of advocacy for psychedelic legalization in California might finally culminate with the passage of SB58, a landmark bill proposing the decriminalization of certain natural psychedelics for therapeutic use. Having cleared the ...
Arizona’s Cannabis Social Equity Licenses: Intent Versus Outcome
PHOENIX — The State of Arizona's well-intentioned efforts to address historical disparities in the cannabis industry appear to be veering off course. A deep dive into the allocation of social equity licenses, designed to benefit ...
Canada’s Long-Awaited Cannabis Strategy Table Takes Shape
TORONTO — Nearly two years after its announcement, Canada's government-mandated cannabis "strategy table" is beginning to show signs of activity. The initiative, aimed at addressing core challenges faced by the nation's beleaguered cannabis industry, had ...
California Governor Newsom Paves the Way for Psychedelic Medicine
LOS ANGELES- In a historic move, Governor Gavin Newsom has put California at the forefront of the psychedelic medicine movement. The Democratic Governor recently signed groundbreaking legislation that would allow healthcare professionals to prescribe substances ...
Harvesting Opportunities Amid Seasonal Price Fluctuations
LOS ANGELES— Among decaying cornstalks and scarecrows, spanning 120 acres north of Paw Paw on County Road 665, stands a rich, green crop of lucrative trees — marijuana plants from Grasshopper Farms. In the cannabis ...
Florida Supreme Court to Deliberate on Cannabis Legalization Ballot Initiative
LOS ANGELES — A contentious ballot initiative that could legalize cannabis for adult use in Florida will be debated in the state's highest court. The Florida Supreme Court has slated November 8 for oral arguments ...
Nationwide Inconsistencies in Cannabis Testing Raise Concerns over Consumer Safety
NEW YORK — With increasing numbers of states legalizing cannabis, state marijuana regulators, producers, and other invested parties are wrestling with how to protect consumers, especially in a landscape where lab-testing requisites, enforcement, and broad-scale ...
New York Cannabis Licensing Resumes Amid Legal Controversies
NEW YORK — The Empire State today marked the opening of its general cannabis licensing window, despite the legal blockade on its Conditional Adult-Use Retail licensing program put in place by a judicial ruling in ...
Atai Life Sciences and Cybin Announce Progress in Psychedelic Drug Studies
LOS ANGELES-- In a sector where every advancement is keenly watched, two significant players in the psychedelic drug industry provided the market with notable updates on their respective drug testing procedures. Atai Life Sciences Shares ...
Medical Cannabis Push Gains Momentum in Idaho
IDAHO — The quest to introduce medical cannabis in Idaho is gathering steam, spearheaded by the determined advocacy group, Kind Idaho. The Gem State remains one of the final holdouts in the nation without any ...
Cybin Inc. Successfully Completes Phase 2 Dosing of Promising Psilocybin Analog for Depression Treatment
NEW YORK — Cybin Inc., a psychedelic-based medical treatments, announced today the successful completion of its Phase 2 clinical trial for CYB003, a proprietary deuterated psilocybin analog. The compound is being evaluated as a potential ...
Georgia Health Officials Miscount Medical Cannabis Patients, Affecting Dispensary Plans
ATLANTA — A recent revelation by the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) has stirred the state’s medical cannabis industry. The DPH admitted to a significant overestimation of the number of medical cannabis patients and ...
U.S. Targets Chinese Firms Over Fentanyl Production
WASHINGTON — In a firm response to the surge of synthetic opioids like fentanyl linked to overdose deaths, the Biden administration unveiled a series of indictments and sanctions targeting Chinese firms and executives implicated in ...
Cannabis Stocks Show Resurgence Amid Regulatory Optimism
NEW YORK- Cannabis stocks, as reflected by the Global Cannabis Stock Index, experienced an explosive upturn on August 30, in light of recent revelations. The Department of Health and Human Services proposed to the DEA ...
California Cannabis Bills Await Governor’s Signature: Implications for Social Equity and Business
LOS ANGELES— A recent session saw California lawmakers passing multiple cannabis-related bills, with the industry carefully watching provisions that address social equity concerns, consumption lounges, and product labeling. Governor Gavin Newsom has until October 14 ...
MediPharm Settles $9 Million Dispute with HEXO Following Tilray’s Acquisition
TORONTO — The landscape of the Canadian cannabis industry experienced a recent shift with the news of MediPharm's $9 million settlement, resolving a lingering commercial disagreement with HEXO. The announcement comes on the heels of ...
U.S. Senate Banking Committee Advances SAFER Banking Act: A Look at the Stance and Votes
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate Banking Committee's anticipated markup of the SAFER Banking Act took place on Sept. 27, marking significant progress in the upper chamber for the legislation. The bill aims to streamline cannabis-related ...
Federal Judge Halts Arkansas Ban on Hemp-derived THC Products
LOS ANGELES- A significant judicial ruling in Arkansas has stalled the state's efforts to reclassify and criminalize hemp-derived THC products. U.S. District Court Judge Billy Roy Wilson issued an order preventing the enforcement of a ...
Ohio Voters Show Strong Support for November’s Cannabis Legalization Measure
COLUMBUS- As Ohio prepares for the upcoming November elections, new data reveals that the majority of the state's voters are leaning towards the approval of a cannabis legalization measure. The poll, commissioned by the Coalition ...
MJUnpacked Conference in Detroit: Where Retailers and Brands Meet Investors in Cannabis
DETROIT–Michigan is set to become the epicenter of the cannabis industry as the highly anticipated MJUnpacked Conference unfolds from October 10th to 12th, 2023. This distinctive event, organized by Jage Media, Inc., promises an exclusive ...
Benzinga Awards Ceremony: Meet The Winners from Chicago 2023
The prestigious Benzinga Cannabis Awards, now in their second year, were recently unveiled during the Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference held in Chicago on September 27-28. These awards serve as a beacon, illuminating the luminaries of ...
Texas Appeals Court Upholds Injunction Against Delta-8 THC Ban
LOS ANGELES- In the ever-evolving landscape of hemp regulation, Texas has encountered more than its fair share of bumps. On Thursday, a significant turn took place as a Texas appeals court upheld a temporary injunction ...
Verano Holdings and TILT Join Forces for Breast Cancer Awareness Month
LOS ANGELES- In a commendable move, Verano Holdings Corp. is prepping for its third annual Breast Cancer Awareness Month campaign, which will commence on October 1st. This extensive initiative will span eleven states, showcasing the ...
Curaleaf Sets Pricing for C$16 Million Offering of Subordinate Voting Shares
LOS ANGELES- In a significant development in the cannabis industry, U.S.-based Curaleaf, a leading provider of consumer cannabis products, has determined the pricing for its marketed offering of subordinate voting shares. As per the announcement, ...
American Nurses Association Recognizes Cannabis as Specialty Practice Area
LOS ANGELES- The American Nurses Association (ANA), representing over 5 million nurses in the United States, has formally recognized cannabis as a distinct nursing specialty practice. This announcement, made in a press release on Wednesday, ...
