MMJ Business Daily

Ohio Lawyers Face Medical Cannabis Conundrums

Lawyers in Ohio have submitted at least two requests to the state Supreme Court’s Board of Professional Conduct to determine whether local attorneys can own or represent medical marijuana businesses, and whether they can use MMJ themselves.

Under Ohio’s new medical cannabis law, licensed professionals, which include attorneys, cannot be punished “solely for engaging in professional or occupational activities related to medical marijuana,” Cleveland.com reported.

But Ohio law says that only the state’s Supreme Court can discipline attorneys, raising the possibility that the new medical marijuana law shielding professionals from punishment for cannabis-related professional activities might not apply to attorneys.

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Ohio Lawyers Face Medical Cannabis Conundrums is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

California MMJ Oil Producer Cleared of All Wrongdoing

A Sonoma County medical cannabis oil producer has resumed operations after being raided last week by law enforcement, in a telling sign of the legal marijuana industry’s lessening fear of its questionable legal status.

The co-founder of Care by Design, Dennis Hunter, whose business was hit by local law enforcement last week, was originally charged with operating a meth lab-type operation. Bail was set at $5 million. But after an immense community outcry, the charges were dropped, and bail was reduced to zero, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

The MMJ businessman was released within 48 hours

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California MMJ Oil Producer Cleared of All Wrongdoing is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

New Mexico MMJ Patients Face Delays on Card Renewals

New Mexico medical marijuana patients are encountering longer delays when renewing their MMJ cards, forcing some patients to bypass legal dispensaries and turn to the black market to purchase medicine.

The delays reflect surging enrollment in the state’s medical cannabis program, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported, a development that ultimately should benefit MMJ dispensary owners.

Under state law, the New Mexico Department of Health has 30 days to approve or reject an application for a medical cannabis card. But current wait times range from 40 to 120 days, according to the New Mexican, as the department

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New Mexico MMJ Patients Face Delays on Card Renewals is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Newsom: California Marijuana Measure Has Anti-Monopoly Safeguards

By Marijuana Business Daily staff

OAKLAND, CA. – Smaller farmers, mom-and-pop businesses and existing medical marijuana companies will have a place in California’s recreational cannabis industry if voters pass a legalization measure this fall.

That’s the message California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a big supporter of the legalization measure, gave marijuana business professionals on Tuesday.

Speaking to roughly 1,000 attendees gathered at a conference here hosted by the National Cannabis Industry Association, Newsom clearly tried to allay fears within California’s cannabis sector, and beyond, that a small number of corporate interests will dominate the state’s market.

“We have got

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Newsom: California Marijuana Measure Has Anti-Monopoly Safeguards is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Snoop Dogg Faces Cannabis Trademark Legal Fight

Cannabis entrepreneur and rapper Snoop Dogg faces a trademark infringement battle with the parent company of the Toronto Maple Leafs professional hockey team.

In November, Snoop launched his cannabis brand Leafs By Snoop, which currently sells eight strains. The rapper also filed a trademark application for the company’s logo with the U.S. Trademark and Patent Office.

Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, the owner of the Maple Leafs, filed an opposition suit targeting Snoop’s logo on June 8. The company asked the trademark office, based in Alexandria, Virginia, for more time to explain why Snoop’s Leafs logo infringes on the Toronto

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Snoop Dogg Faces Cannabis Trademark Legal Fight is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

One of Two Arkansas MMJ Campaigns Submits Signatures

Weeks in advance of a July deadline, one of two competing medical marijuana legalization campaigns in Arkansas has submitted signatures to the secretary of state’s office in a bid to get the second group to abandon its initiative.

Arkansans for Compassionate Care (ACC) turned in 117,469 signatures to the state on Tuesday morning, according to the Associated Press. It needs 67,887 valid signatures to qualify for the ballot because its measure would change state statute.

The second campaign, which is being run by Little Rock attorney David Couch, needs to submit 84,859 valid signatures by July 8, a higher

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One of Two Arkansas MMJ Campaigns Submits Signatures is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Canadian Legalization Chief Quietly Meets MMJ Industry Advocates

Bill Blair, the Canadian government’s point man on marijuana legalization, has held “behind the scenes” meetings with advocates of licensed and unlicensed medical cannabis dispensaries, listening to their suggestions for how the government should regulate the MJ industry.

Blair had recently lambasted dispensary owners as people “who don’t care” about the law or regulations, the Globe and Mail reported. But since then the Liberal lawmaker and Toronto’s former police chief has met quietly with Rosy Mondin, co-founder of the Cannabis Trade Alliance of Canada, which represents legal and illegal marijuana business owners.

According to the Globe and Mai

Canadian Legalization Chief Quietly Meets MMJ Industry Advocates is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Hemp Industry Facing Barriers to Commercialization

By Omar Sacirbey

It’s been more than two years since President Barack Obama signed legislation authorizing the limited cultivation of hemp, but the fledgling industry remains a long way from becoming a thriving business.

Observers say commercialization of this potentially lucrative plant remains limited for legal, financial and technological reasons.

They point to restrictive federal guidelines governing hemp, a dearth of investors willing to wager money on the plant, and a lack of commercial-scale processing equipment. Finding fixes to these challenges has proven difficult.

Hemp is used for various products, including CBD-based medicines as well as paper, clothing, food, lotions

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Hemp Industry Facing Barriers to Commercialization is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Nevada Opens Fast Track Patient Office

Dispensaries in Nevada may see a rise in patients thanks to a new state medical marijuana patient processing office in Las Vegas where those with doctors’ recommendations can apply for and fill prescriptions the same day.

The office, which opened last week, is expected to greatly reduce application wait times, according to the Las Vegas Review Journal. Up until now, patients had to mail their application to the capital, Carson City, and it would often take weeks before they would receive their cards back in the mail.

The new office is the product of a partnership between

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Nevada Opens Fast Track Patient Office is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Willie Nelson’s Marijuana Company Hiring in Colorado

Legendary country singer Willie Nelson has followed through on his promise to join the cannabis industry with his very own line of marijuana, called “Willie’s Reserve.” And now he’s also hiring to help staff the company.

According to the Denver Post, Nelson’s looking for five full time staffers in Colorado, including a production manager, extractor, compliance officer, bookkeeper and sales director.

Although Nelson’s product line hasn’t yet formally launched, it’s about to do so, though it’s unclear whether or not Nelson’s company will obtain its own storefront or simply sell product through existing retailers, as Snoop

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Willie Nelson’s Marijuana Company Hiring in Colorado is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs