Border Woes: Transporting CBD into Canada is Not OK
Uncategorized October 9, 2019
In a recent tweet, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) reminded us that transporting CBD oil into Canada remains illegal. While in most places south of the 49th parallel what CBSA has to say is of little consequence, it certainly matters here in Washington State, where you’re never too far away from the Canadian border….
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Cannabis Branding: New Rule Requires U.S. Attorney for Foreign Applicants and Registrants
Uncategorized September 13, 2019
Earlier this summer, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced that as of August 3, 2019, all foreign-domiciled trademark applicants, registrants, and parties to Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) proceedings must be represented by an attorney who is licensed to practice in the United States. This will apply to all trademark applicants,…
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International Cannabis: Breaking the Law, Staying Honest
Recreational MarijuanaUncategorized September 7, 2019
Yesterday, I came across an article in this week’s Economist titled Going to Pot (*sigh*). The premise of this article is that “a global revolution in attitudes towards cannabis is under way” and it explains how countries in many parts of the world have begun to undertake cannabis reforms in varying degrees. This includes everything…
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Young Living vs. doTERRA: Utah MLM Companies and the CBD Race
ColoradoHempUncategorized August 8, 2019
Utah is a unique state for a variety of reasons, but recently it gained additional notoriety because the “world leader in essential oils” (based on global revenue), Young Living Essential Oils, announced it acquired Colorado-based Nature’s Ultra. Nature’s Ultra owns more than 1,500 acres of hemp farms in Colorado and produces “natural, organic, vegan approved,…
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Seven Things Foreign Companies Should Consider When Investing in US Cannabis
Uncategorized August 1, 2019
Our cannabis business attorneys see more and more deals where foreign individuals or companies want to invest in or acquire licensed cannabis businesses. It’s often easy for foreign companies to assume that because cannabis is state-lawful, it is similar to any other investment. This couldn’t be farther for the truth. Even for local companies, the…
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Currently, seven of Canada’s top ten cannabis patent holders are major multi-national pharmaceutical companies, according to a joint research project by Washington D.C.-based New Frontier Data and London-based cannabis bio-technology firm, Grow Biotech. The list includes Ciba-Geigy AG (Switzerland) with 21 patents; Pfizer Products (United States) with 14; and Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (Sweden) with 13….
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Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from China in U.S. Cannabis Businesses
CaliforniaRecreational MarijuanaUncategorized June 25, 2019
If you think your Chinese investor will be able to get your cannabis venture the promised investment funds any time soon, you are in for a long slog. Most companies do not care who provides their investment capital (as long as the investors are content being passive investors), and Chinese households have typically been lauded…
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Cannabis and International Trade: Don’t Ignore the U.S.-China Trade War
HempUncategorized May 17, 2019
Marijuana and hemp companies should not ignore the US-China trade war. Numerous products and components in these industries might be subject to increased tariffs of 25 percent. If cannabis companies can’t find new suppliers, those are costs that they will have to bear, or will have to pass on to their consumers. The Office of…
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Banking, intellectual property, food and beverage (and cosmetics), international trade, domestic trade, state laws, ag production contracts, etc., etc. When it comes to industrial hemp, the 2018 Farm Bill upended all of these things. Our cannabis business lawyers have been busy advising a large number of new hemp and hemp-CBD businesses getting in on the…
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Cannabis and Immigration: Marijuana Activity a Conditional Bar to Obtaining U.S. Citizenship
Recreational MarijuanaUncategorized May 1, 2019
On April 19, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it would formally update its Policy Manual regarding how cannabis-related activity–even when it took place in states that have legalized the medical and recreational use of marijuana–would impact naturalization. The Policy Manual is self-defined by the USCIS as its centralized online repository for…
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