Latest Posts
Search for:
Category

Legislation (Pending)

Category

Cannabis legalization in Mexico? Not so fast

As discussed in our previous post, Mexican lawmakers had until the end of October to issue regulations on cannabis. Nonetheless, and even though a preliminary draft bill for cannabis legalization was recently introduced in the Congress, the Mexican Senate now believes that additional time will be needed to reach an agreement on how cannabis should be regulated. On October 28, 2019, three days prior to the deadline, the Mexican Senate requested an extension from the Mexican Supreme Court of Justice. The extension was granted through an Accord dated October 31, 2019. Pursuant to the Accord, published on the Supreme Court’s website, the President of the Senate’s Board, Mrs. Mónica Fernández Balboa, requested the extension in order to bring together the views of various sectors of society (medical, academic, agricultural and business sectors) and generate an agreed regulation on cannabis. This request was reviewed immediately by the Supreme Court which, “on an exceptional basis, as a special one-time event, considering the complexity…

Recreational cannabis gets the yellow light in Australia’s capital

Cannabis was high on Australia’s regulatory agenda in September, with two significant developments. In our last post we discussed the tabling of Professor John McMillan AO’s Final Report in Parliament on 5 September 2019, which recommended extensive amendments to the regime for cultivation, production and manufacture of medicinal cannabis in Australia. In this post we discuss the move to legalise the personal possession and use of small amounts of cannabis in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). On 25 September 2019, the ACT Legislative Assembly voted to legalise the personal possession and cultivation of cannabis under the Drugs of Dependence (Personal Cannabis Use) Amendment Bill 2018 (ACT) (Bill). The changes will allow adults to possess up to 50 grams of dry cannabis (or 150 grams of fresh or ‘wet’ cannabis) per person, grow two plants per person, and grow up to four plants at any one household. The amendments have been approved in principle and will come into effect on 31 January…

Countdown to Cannabis Legalization: Mexican Senate Introduces Cannabis Law Bill

Our prior post discussed the rapidly evolving cannabis regulatory environment in Mexico.  As the Supreme Court-ordered deadline for lawmakers to end cannabis prohibition approaches, Senators raced against the clock and unveiled last week a preliminary draft bill of a law that would regulate nearly the entire cannabis industry. The preliminary draft bill, titled the “Law for Cannabis Regulation”, comprises 74 articles and 11 transitory provisions that integrate various legislative proposals, including the prior leading bill from Mrs. Olga Sánchez Cordero (former Senator and Judge, and current Minister of Interior). Among other things, the Law for Cannabis Regulation: Allows (i) recreational, (ii) scientific, (iii) medical and therapeutic, and (iv) industrial uses of cannabis; Provides that farmers, growers and vulnerable communities are given priority on the issuance of licenses and authorizations and access to financing from development banks; and Sets a growing limit of up to four cannabis plants, on private property, for adults 18-years or older who can join “consumption associations” (civil…

Reforms underway for Medicinal Cannabis in Australia

Executive summary Professor John McMillan AO’s Final Report of the review of Australia’s medicinal cannabis framework under the Narcotic Drugs Act 1967 (Cth) (ND Act) was tabled in Parliament on 5 September 2019, ahead of the 29 October 2019 target date. A link to the Final Report is here. The review was conducted on the extensive amendments made to the ND Act in 2016, which established a regime for the cultivation, production and manufacture of medicinal cannabis in Australia. The Final Report contains 26 recommendations to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the regulatory regime including: a new single licensing regime for the cultivation, production and manufacture of medicinal cannabis to minimise the regulatory burden on the industry (recommending extensive amendments to the ND Act and the Narcotic Drugs Regulation 2016 (Cth) (ND Regulations)); removing constraints on the permitted uses of medicinal cannabis products;movement away from the Office of Drug Control’s (ODC’s) focus on risk minimisation to develop a more commercial…

Welcome to Our Podcast Series – Episode 1 – On the Cannabis Industry in Africa

Welcome to the Global Cannabis Compliance Podcast Series. Because we have received so many requests from readers for more information about the topics we have been covering, we have decided to start a podcast series featuring in-depth discussions with experts. Like the blog, the podcast series will cover all aspects of cannabis compliance including existing laws and proposed legislation in various countries and U.S. states, significant court cases and judicial decisions, enforcement trends, and best practices in compliance. If you have any suggestions for podcast topics, please let us know. Episode 1 – On the Cannabis Industry in Africa Countries throughout the world are de-criminalizing the medical and recreational use of cannabis. Africa is no exception. Governments across the African continent are hoping that cannabis will help them diversify their economies and generate transactions in hard currency. In this initial podcast, Darryl Bernstein, a partner in Baker’s Johannesburg office, talks about the cannabis industry in Africa – where it is, where…

Cannabis Law in Mexico: Where is it Going?

Cannabis legalization is proceeding in Mexico after several years of no action. In 2017, Mexico published an amendment to its General Health Law that allowed THC use for medical purposes and ordered the government to implement secondary regulations to support the new law. At first, nothing happened. However, in August 2019, the Supreme Court of Justice in Mexico granted an amparo (constitutional) injunction to an underage child suffering from West syndrome, a condition that required CBD and THC dosing as part of his medical treatment. The Court determined that the child´s right to health services was violated because the Ministry of Health’s delay in issuing the secondary regulations that guaranteed child access to the therapeutic use of Cannabis. The injunction represented a watershed moment for cannabis legalization in Mexico. In addition to the humanitarian benefit of ensuring the child’s access to his medical treatment, the Court ordered the Ministry of Health to issue regulations regarding the therapeutic use of cannabis and…

The Boulder Alternative Care Case, Section 280E, and the SAFE Banking Act

The cannabis industry operates at a disadvantage vis a vis other industries because Section 280E of the Internal Revenue Code prohibits business expense deductions for businesses that “traffic” in federally controlled substances, including cannabis. As a result, cannabis companies pay taxes on gross rather than net profits. In the latest defeat for cannabis companies in the Tax Court, Boulder Alternative Care, LLC (“Boulder”), a Colorado dispensary, lost its bid to obtain ordinary business expense deductions for its legal operations (Docket No. 16495-16). Boulder argued that it was entitled to those deductions because Colorado, not federal, law controls. Boulder’s position was that “[s]ince Colorado law controls, state legal marijuana sales cannot be considered ‘prohibited’ under federal law.” In other words, Boulder argued (unsuccessfully) that because Colorado law permits the sale of marijuana for medical purposes, those sales are exempted from the Controlled Substances Act, and by extension, section 280E. The Tax Court disagreed, citing a long history of Supreme Court and Circuit…

The SAFE Banking Act of 2019: A Turning Point?

On September 25, 2019, the House of Representatives passed the “Secure And Fair Enforcement Banking Act of 2019” or the “SAFE Banking Act of 2019” (H.R. 1595) by a vote of 321 to 103. If adopted, the SAFE Banking Act would, among other things, create a safe harbor for depository institutions that provide banking services to state compliant marijuana-related businesses and also remove proceeds from state compliant cannabis transactions from the definition of criminal proceeds under U.S. anti-money laundering laws. This would dramatically change the industry, opening a whole range of legitimate services to state compliant businesses, and would also be a significant step in the direction of de facto legalization of the state compliant cannabis industry. What Would the Act Do? The Act defines “cannabis-related legitimate business” as a “manufacturer, producer, or any person or company” that engages in any activity that is legal under state law and “participates in any business or organized activity that involves handling cannabis…

Growing Trends in Africa – The Rise of Cannabis

Many countries across the globe are in the process of decriminalising the medical and recreational use of Cannabis, and Africa is no exception to this growing trend. Governments across the continent are hoping that the decriminalisation of the plant will aid them in their quest to diversify their economies and generate transactions in hard currency. The Cannabis industry is one with a multi-billion-dollar footprint, and businesses are already benefiting from growing, distributing and exporting medicinal Cannabis. According to The Consumer Staples Report by Barclays, the global Cannabis market could be worth up to USD 272 billion in the coming years.  Africa is reported as being the world’s largest producer and consumer of Cannabis, albeit that the laws on medicinal use of the plant are still in their infancy. The African Cannabis Report, released by Prohibition Partners, noted that South Africa was capable of becoming one of Africa’s largest medicinal Cannabis markets, with an estimated potential industry value of over USD 1.7…

Will Political Divisions Prevent Passage of the SAFE Banking Act?

Backers of a cannabis banking bill are accusing one another of undermining its prospects for success by pushing for amendments that would expand its scope in different directions.  The SAFE Banking Act (H.R. 1595) would allow financial firms to work with state-licensed cannabis businesses without running afoul of federal anti-money laundering laws.  The bill introduced by Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) has attracted 206 co-sponsors from both sides of the aisle and advanced out of committee in March.  Senators Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Cory Gardner (R-CO) introduced a companion version in the Senate (S. 1200) that has 30 other co-sponsors.  However, since then, lawmakers seem to have split into three camps around the bill: (i) those who support the bill as is and want to keep it narrowly tailored, (ii) those who will support the bill only if it includes banking access protections for other industries like firearms dealers, and (iii) those who appear indifferent to the bill, preferring to concentrate on…