Cannabis

  • April 01, 2024

    Split 9th Circ. Says Court Can Void Pot Co.'s TM Applications

    A Ninth Circuit majority affirmed on Monday the cancellation of cannabis grower Central Coast Agriculture's trademark applications for its "Raw Garden" brand due to its lack of bona fide intent to use the marks commercially, with one judge dissenting, saying district courts can't interfere with and prematurely cancel trademark applications.

  • April 01, 2024

    Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

    Last week, Delaware's Court of Chancery saw a $42.5 million settlement, dismissal of two big suits with two more remanded back, and new cases from shareholders of Walt Disney, Donald Trump's Truth Social, Rivian Automotive and BarkBox.

  • April 01, 2024

    Swedish Match Sued Over Allegedly Youth Targeted Zyn Ads

    Philip Morris International and its subsidiary Swedish Match North America LLC have been hit with a putative class action from an unnamed California man alleging he became addicted to the company's Zyn smokeless oral nicotine pouches when he was a minor because of the product's marketing campaign.

  • April 01, 2024

    Fla. High Court Says Voters Will Choose Whether To Legalize Pot

    Florida voters will have the opportunity to legalize recreational marijuana at the ballot box this November, after the state Supreme Court on Monday rejected a challenge brought by the state's attorney general and ruled that the proposal didn't violate a state rule restricting ballot measures to only one subject.

  • April 01, 2024

    Last Hemp Co. Exec Agrees To SEC Injunction In $14M Scam

    A CanaFarma Hemp Products Corp. co-founder who pled guilty to claims that he lied about the company's prospects in order to raise $14 million has become the last of four executives to reach a partial agreement resolving the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's civil claims.

  • April 01, 2024

    Mass. Justices Puzzle Over Standard For Zoning Appeal Bond

    Massachusetts' highest court on Monday grappled with whether developers in Boston must show that project opponents are acting in bad faith in order to obtain an appeal bond, as they now must do elsewhere in the state since a 2022 holding in a suburban affordable housing challenge.

  • April 01, 2024

    With Suit, NJ City Looks To Clear The Air About Cops' Pot Use

    A New Jersey city's lawsuit demanding clarity over whether state or federal law governs off-duty pot use for cops could help cannabis and employment lawyers navigate a growing battle between workers' rights and workplace safety.

  • April 01, 2024

    Duracell Gets Vape Co.'s 'Optimum' TM Suit Tossed For Good

    A New Jersey federal judge has thrown out a vape company's trademark suit alleging Duracell U.S. Operations Inc. infringed on its trademark for the "Optimum" brand name, saying there's no evidence showing any actual or potential confusion between the companies' products.

  • March 29, 2024

    Strange But True: Product Liability Stories For April Fools'

    Severed digits and fried rodents in food, e-cigarettes shaped like liquor bottles and claims that the advertising for Reese's peanut butter candies dashes consumers' expectations made Law360's list of strange cases for April Fool's.

  • March 29, 2024

    Weed Investors' Money Shift Cost Co. Millions, Suit Says

    A Michigan entrepreneur has hit his ex-partner with a $5 million lawsuit, accusing him of wrecking plans to buy a 10-acre marijuana grow facility near Ann Arbor by poaching the lead investors so he could fund his own Colorado cultivation.

  • March 29, 2024

    Cannabis Co. Consultant Barred From Penny Stock Trading

    A Florida federal judge has barred a self-designated consultant for a cannabis company from penny stock trading for life, finding that he knowingly put out statements claiming the company had deals to do business in countries where it was not legally allowed to sell cannabis products.

  • March 28, 2024

    Union Permitted MTA's Drug Test In Rep's Firing Suit, Judge Says

    A former New York electrical worker and union rep can't sue the Metropolitan Transportation Authority for firing him after a return-to-work drug test found evidence of marijuana use, as the union never raised the alarm about such drug tests before, a New York federal judge has ruled.

  • March 28, 2024

    Va. Gov., Critic Of Legal Pot, Vetoes Bill To Begin Sales

    Glenn Youngkin, the Republican governor of Virginia, on Thursday vetoed a Legislature-approved bill that would have taxed and regulated the sale of adult-use cannabis, saying marijuana sales would pose a public health and safety risk to Virginians.

  • March 28, 2024

    Cannabis Drink Co. Ordered To Pay Directors' Legal Fees

    A Minnesota-based joint venture formed to make cannabis-infused health drinks must partially indemnify two directors it sued for breaches of fiduciary duty after the complaints against them were dismissed, Delaware's Court of Chancery ruled Thursday.

  • March 28, 2024

    Faruqi & Faruqi Beats 5 Firms To Lead NewAge Investor Suit

    A Colorado district judge has selected two clients of Faruqi & Faruqi LLP to lead an investor class action accusing the executives and directors of wellness company NewAge Inc. of securities fraud, saying the plaintiff with an even bigger financial interest is unfit for appointment because he hid his "troubling" background.

  • March 28, 2024

    FDA Warns 61 Stores Over Illegal Vape Sales

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration this week sent warnings to 61 retailers for selling illegal Lava and Elf Bar cigarettes, saying that both of the unauthorized brands are popular with young people.

  • March 28, 2024

    Trucking Co. Can't Undo $20M Verdict In Crash Death Suit

    A Missouri appeals court won't let Great Plains Trucking Inc. upend a $20 million verdict against it in a wrongful death suit, finding the trial court didn't abuse its discretion by excluding testimony about a plaintiff's cannabis usage or allowing the mother and father of the deceased to use separate counsel at trial.

  • March 28, 2024

    Ex-BigLaw Atty Named Acting GC At Neptune Wellness

    Neptune Wellness Solutions Inc. elevated to acting general counsel one of its in-house lawyers, who previously worked in BigLaw, the consumer-packaged goods company said in a securities filing on Wednesday, just days after a federal judge's order to replace its legal counsel.

  • March 28, 2024

    'Better Made' Chips Goes After 'Better Smoke' Pot

    Detroit-based Better Made Snack Foods Inc. said a number of cannabis companies in Michigan have been selling a line of "Better Smoke" cannabis products that mimics the snack brand's century-old logo in a trademark infringement lawsuit filed Wednesday.

  • March 28, 2024

    Romney Tells DEA Pot Review Must Heed Treaty Obligations

    Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, on Wednesday expressed skepticism about federal health regulators' recommendation to loosen marijuana restrictions and pressed the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to explain how it would consider the drug's status in light of U.S. treaties.

  • March 27, 2024

    Cannabis Caucus Dems Urge Garland To Restore Pot Protections

    The two Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives' Congressional Cannabis Caucus blasted Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday for not reissuing "overdue" protections for marijuana businesses acting in compliance with state and tribal law.

  • March 27, 2024

    LG Chem Mostly Wins Discovery Feud In Vape Battery Suit

    A New Jersey appellate court on Wednesday allowed an LG Corp. unit to prevail on 21 out of 22 discovery challenges in a suit over an exploding vape pen battery, saying the majority of the plaintiff's requests were overly broad and not tailored to his claims.

  • March 27, 2024

    CBD Retailer Used Spyware, Recorded Online Chats, Suit Says

    Charlotte's Web Inc., a CBD retailer, is secretly recording conversations of those who visit its website in violation of a California privacy law that is simple to follow, according to a proposed class action removed to federal court on Monday.

  • March 27, 2024

    Fla. Panel Reverses $43M Judgment In Tobacco Suit

    Florida's Third District Court of Appeal on Wednesday reversed a $43 million judgment against Philip Morris USA Inc. in a wrongful death case, issuing a split decision stating that hearsay testimony allowed during the trial wasn't offered to prove that the female decedent believed filtered cigarettes were safe.

  • March 27, 2024

    Chancery Sides With Cannabis Company On Legal Fees Row

    A Delaware Court of Chancery judge at a Wednesday hearing gave Left Coast Ventures Inc. time to fulfill a court order requiring it to cover legal fees for three former directors of the cannabis company defending a merger-related suit, after a company attorney told the judge the money will be coming.

Expert Analysis

  • Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World

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    As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.

  • Series

    ESG Around The World: South Korea

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    Numerous ESG trends have materialized in South Korea in the past three years, with impacts ranging from greenwashing prevention and carbon neutrality measures to workplace harassment and board diversity initiatives, say Chang Wook Min and Hyun Chan Jung at Jipyong.

  • General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI

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    With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.

  • Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information

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    As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.

  • Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD

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    Given the prevalence of ADHD among attorneys, it is imperative that the legal community gain a better understanding of how ADHD affects well-being, and that resources and strategies exist for attorneys with this disability to manage their symptoms and achieve success, say Casey Dixon at Dixon Life Coaching and Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • Regulatory Shift May Offer Lifeline To NY's Cannabis Industry

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    Recent developments may help to open up the regulatory log jam and increase the number of licensed dispensaries in New York state, and can eventually allow the licensed cannabis market to win out over unlicensed dispensaries, say attorneys at Davis+Gilbert.

  • Why Hemp-Synthesized Intoxicants Need Uniform Regs

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    State laws regulating hemp-synthesized intoxicants are a patchwork with little consistency between any given state, and without the adoption of a uniform regulatory framework, producers and consumers alike will need to be very cautious, say Dylan Anderson and Seth Goldberg at Duane Morris.

  • Attorneys, Law Schools Must Adapt To New Era Of Evidence

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    Technological advancements mean more direct evidence is being created than ever before, and attorneys as well as law schools must modify their methods to account for new challenges in how this evidence is collected and used to try cases, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Series

    ESG Around The World: The UK

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    Following Brexit, the U.K. has adopted a different approach to regulating environmental, social and governance factors from the European Union — an approach that focuses on climate disclosures by U.K.-regulated entities, while steering clear of the more ambitious objectives pursued by the EU, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Tips For Litigating Against Pro Se Parties In Complex Disputes

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    Litigating against self-represented parties in complex cases can pose unique challenges for attorneys, but for the most part, it requires the same skills that are useful in other cases — from documenting everything to understanding one’s ethical duties, says Bryan Ketroser at Alto Litigation.

  • Pro Bono Work Is Powerful Self-Help For Attorneys

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    Oct. 22-28 is Pro Bono Week, serving as a useful reminder that offering free legal help to the public can help attorneys expand their legal toolbox, forge community relationships and create human connections, despite the challenges of this kind of work, says Orlando Lopez at Culhane Meadows.

  • State Regs Sow Discord Between Cannabis, Hemp Industries

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    Connecticut, Maryland and Washington are the latest states choosing to require intoxicating hemp products to comply with the states' recreational marijuana laws, resulting in a widening rift between cannabis and hemp as Congress works on crafting new hemp legislation within the upcoming 2023 Farm Bill, say attorneys at Wilson Elser.

  • Series

    Playing In A Rock Cover Band Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Performing in a classic rock cover band has driven me to hone several skills — including focus, organization and networking — that have benefited my professional development, demonstrating that taking time to follow your muse outside of work can be a boon to your career, says Michael Gambro at Cadwalader.

  • Series

    The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Espinosa On 'Lincoln Lawyer'

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    The murder trials in Netflix’s “The Lincoln Lawyer” illustrate the stark contrast between the ethical high ground that fosters and maintains the criminal justice system's integrity, and the ethical abyss that can undermine it, with an important reminder for all legal practitioners, say Judge Adam Espinosa and Andrew Howard at the Colorado 2nd Judicial District Court.

  • Opinion

    Newman Suspension Shows Need For Judicial Reform

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    The recent suspension of U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman following her alleged refusal to participate in a disability inquiry reveals the need for judicial misconduct reforms to ensure that judges step down when they can no longer serve effectively, says Aliza Shatzman at The Legal Accountability Project.

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