Legal Insights

Bureau of Cannabis Control California's Proposed Regulations for Cannabis Businesses
Rogoway Law Group

Bureau of Cannabis Control’s Newly Proposed Regulations

The Bureau of Cannabis Control recently announced the release of final proposed cannabis regulations which were submitted December 3, 2018 to the California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) and are currently under review by OAL.  The proposed changes will not be in effect until they are approved by OAL but we expect them to go into effect, as drafted, upon

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A Wage & Hour Primer for HR Managers of California Cannabis Businesses
Rogoway Law Group

A Wage & Hour Primer for HR Managers of Cannabis Businesses

We are offering the following observations so that HR managers in the cannabis field can better understand some of the rules that govern wage and hour requirements here in California. These rules are important because failure to follow them can expose employers (the operating cannabis companies) and sometimes their executives to significant civil fines and penalties and, in the case

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Will “Cannabis” Companies Slowly Become “Life Science” Companies?
Rogoway Law Group

Will Cannabis Companies Slowly Become Life Science Companies? : A Perspective from a “Life Science – Cannabis” Attorney

People from the cannabis field will often ask me how practicing “cannabis law” compares to my time spent practicing “FDA” (a/k/a life science) law at two publicly traded biotechs and a global medical device manufacturer. Given the many similarities between the two industries, cannabis and life science, but with one industry firmly established on the national scene and the other

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Anticipating Due Diligence for Cannabis Industry Transactions
Rogoway Law Group

Anticipating Due Diligence for Cannabis Industry Transactions

Due diligence plays an important role in many types of cannabis industry transactions.  Due diligence involves a third-party conducting a thorough review of certain documents and records related to a business.  As a best practice, cannabis companies should remain aware of the various times when third parties may conduct due diligence with respect to their business. Often investors participating in

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Hemp Industry New and Proposed Regulations
Rogoway Law Group

How Proposed and Current Regulations May Affect Your Hemp Business.

Federal Regulation of Hemp In 2014, US Congress passed the Farm Bill, which authorized states to implement pilot programs to study the cultivation of and market for industrial hemp. Within the Farm Bill, Congress defined industrial hemp as “Cannabis sativa L. and any part of such plant, whether growing or not, with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than

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Rogoway Law Group

The Cannabis RICO Cases – Where Are They Now?

If you’ve been keeping up with cannabis litigation recently, you’ve probably noticed a growing number of cases brought against cannabis cultivators and dispensaries by angry neighbors alleging violations under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), the federal anti-racketeering laws. This blog provides an update on the current status of these “cannabis RICO” cases, along with a prediction for

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Phantom Stock For Cannabis Businesses
Rogoway Law Group

Phantom Stock – Why Private Cannabis Companies Should Take Note

Privately held cannabis companies might want to give serious consideration to awarding their employees “phantom stock” rather than equity options. Working so close to Silicon Valley and its “option holder” millionaires, can make it easy for California entrepreneurs to forget the many challenges private companies face when awarding equity options to employees. Obviously, private companies lack a public market for

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Off Site Cannabis Consumption
Rogoway Law Group

“Off-Site” Cannabis Consumption: What You Need To Know

We have previously discussed in how the Medicinal and Adult Use of Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (MAUCRSA) states that “a local jurisdiction may allow for the smoking, vaporizing, and ingesting of cannabis or cannabis products on the premises of a retailer or microbusiness … if all of the following are met: Access to the area where cannabis consumption is allowed is restricted

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Cannabis Startup 101: Building a Strong Foundation for Your Cannabis Business
Rogoway Law Group

Cannabis Startup 101: Building a Strong Foundation for Your Cannabis Business

Starting a company is intimidating for most, if not all, early stage entrepreneurs. Often founders are product-focused and put legal concerns on the back burner in hopes that they can get up and running before incurring legal expenses.  Unfortunately, in the cannabis space especially, it’s important to have legal advice at the outset of the business to avoid later excess

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Copyright Protection for Cannabis Businesses
Josh Zetlin

Copyright Protection as an Alternative to Trademarks: A Guide for Cannabis Businesses

As most companies are well aware, a well-known brand (aka a trademark) represents one of a business’s most valuable assets.  Companies spend thousands of dollars and countless hours developing a distinctive visual look, crafting the perfect logo, and devising ways to make their product packaging stand out from the crowd of competitors.  It’s only natural for companies to vigorously protect

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