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Cannabis
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January 07, 2025
Alcohol Warnings Unlikely To Bring Same Fate Tobacco Faced
The U.S. surgeon general on Friday recommended that alcohol carry warnings about cancer risks, and attorneys say that while warning labels might be warranted, alcohol is unlikely to become the next tobacco.
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January 07, 2025
Cannabis Reformers Move To Oust DEA From Pot Hearings
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has worked behind the scenes to undermine an administrative process that will determine whether federal restrictions on marijuana are relaxed, a group of reformers alleged in a new filing submitted to an agency tribunal.
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January 07, 2025
4th Circ. Says Farm Bill Does Not Preempt Va. Hemp Law
The Fourth Circuit affirmed Tuesday that the federal farm bill legalizing hemp nationwide did not preempt Virginia's new law reining in intoxicating products containing THC derived from hemp.
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January 07, 2025
Mich. Town Tries To Ditch $5M Suit Over Dispensary Flip-Flop
A Michigan township accused of greenlighting, and then blocking, a developer's special-use permit for a marijuana dispensary said Tuesday the developer suing it for $5 million never actually got the required prequalification from the state.
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January 07, 2025
Landowner Gets Pot Farm Transport Easement Nixed
A California state appeals court has vacated a conditional use permit that the County of Santa Barbara issued to a cannabis farm, finding that a nearby landowner can deny the use of an easement on its property to transport the federally illegal goods.
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January 06, 2025
Pa. Licensing Law For Vape-Makers Flawed, Panel Finds
Part of Pennsylvania's law regulating licenses for e-cigarette manufacturers is unconstitutional because it gives legislative power to the state's Department of Revenue, an appellate court has ruled in an issue of first impression.
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January 06, 2025
DC Judge Denies Atty's Bid To Hasten Search For DEA Leak
A D.C. federal judge Monday denied a Texas attorney's bid to force the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to turn over purported communications between agency personnel and anti-legalization activists regarding a proposal to loosen federal restrictions on marijuana.
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January 06, 2025
NY Pot Agencies Want Hemp Regulations Challenge Tossed
New York's state cannabis regulators are urging a federal court to throw out a challenge to its new hemp regulations, saying that the new rules are necessary to close a loophole through which retailers were selling products that were technically hemp, but are as intoxicating as cannabis.
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January 06, 2025
Girard Sharp Launches Into New Year With New Leadership
San Francisco-based Girard Sharp has kicked off the new year with a major leadership change, announcing Monday that Daniel C. Girard had stepped down as managing partner of the prominent plaintiffs complex litigation boutique he founded in 1995 and that longtime partner Dena C. Sharp was taking the reins.
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January 03, 2025
Budtender Says Tip Pool Suit Can Dodge Arbitration
A budtender accusing a cannabis company of mishandling tips told a Michigan federal court that the arbitration clause in his employment agreement lacks mutuality and doesn't cover his claims, arguing that his case should stay in court.
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January 03, 2025
Orchard Settles 'Criminal Enterprise' Defamation Suit
The former part-owner of a Michigan orchard and the orchard's holding company have settled claims that the ex-partner defamed the company and caused a loss of business by logging into its Google business account and calling it a "criminal enterprise."
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January 03, 2025
Hemp Cos. Tell 10th Circ. New Law Is Unconstitutional
A group of hemp companies challenging a new Wyoming law restricting their products told the Tenth Circuit on Thursday the policy is unconstitutional and their appeal is ripe despite the lower court dismissing their suit.
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January 03, 2025
Texas City, Sheriff Say Retailers' Suit Should Go Up In Smoke
The city of Allen, Texas, and the Collin County sheriff are asking a Texas federal court to throw out a suit alleging they illegally raided a smoke shop selling hemp products, arguing in separate motions that the complaint falls far short of supporting its claims.
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January 02, 2025
9th Circ. Revives Pot Fines Suit Against Calif. County
A proposed class of Northern California landowners can pursue a swath of constitutional claims against Humboldt County officials with the Ninth Circuit ruling they plausibly pled the county was overzealous in its efforts to crack down on allegedly illegal cannabis growers.
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January 02, 2025
Reps. Titus, Omar To Co-Chair Congressional Cannabis Caucus
Democratic Reps. Dina Titus and Ilhan Omar announced Thursday that they have been appointed to co-chair the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, succeeding Reps. Earl Blumenauer and Barbara Lee, who are retiring at the end of the week.
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January 02, 2025
Texas Pot User's Gun Conviction Deemed Unconstitutional
A Texas federal judge has dismissed a case against a cannabis user who pled guilty to owning a gun while being a user of controlled substances, finding that the law as applied to this case is unconstitutional because the government hasn't shown he was intoxicated at the time of his arrest.
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January 02, 2025
Hoboken Pot Dispensary Was Rightly Approved, Panel Finds
A New Jersey appeals panel has given its approval to a Hoboken marijuana dispensary, saying the trial court was wrong to block it from operating based on an ordinance passed after it submitted a conditional use application for its location.
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January 01, 2025
The Top 5 High Court Cases To Watch This Spring
The U.S. Supreme Court justices will return from the winter holidays to tackle major First Amendment questions and several administrative law disputes — all arising from the Fifth Circuit — that could further change how federal agencies promulgate rules and defend them.
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January 01, 2025
Copyright & Trademark Policy And Trends To Watch In 2025
Congress has its sights set on cracking down on deepfakes this year with a pair of proposals aimed at establishing uniform protections for individuals nationally, and intellectual property attorneys are watching Illinois, which has become a go-to place to pursue online counterfeiters. Here are Law360's picks for the copyright and trademark policies and trends to watch this year.
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January 01, 2025
Cannabis And Hemp Lawsuits To Watch In 2025
A California litigator alleging the unconstitutionality of multiple state and local cannabis licensure programs is pushing his actions through the federal circuit courts, hemp industry stakeholders are alleging that states have overstepped their authority with policies meant to rein in intoxicating products, and a coalition of marijuana companies' challenge to the federal ban on prohibition had its day in federal appellate court.
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January 01, 2025
Cannabis Advocates Hone Their Policy Goals For 2025
With Republicans set to control the legislative and executive branches, cannabis advocates predict that federal cannabis reforms in 2025 are still achievable, but note they will likely be more incremental than holistic, with an emphasis on public safety and states' rights.
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January 01, 2025
Pa. Legislation To Watch: Noncompetes, Funding Solutions
A new Pennsylvania law restricting noncompete agreements for certain healthcare workers has left some employment law attorneys with questions, while perennial public transit funding issues signal that revenue-generating regulations could appear on next year's legislative agenda.
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December 23, 2024
Altria Unit Convinces Calif. Court To Ban Retail Elf Bar Sales
The e-cigarette unit of tobacco giant Altria Group scored a legal victory against the highly popular flavored vape brand Elf Bar after it convinced a California federal judge to block a number of smoke shops from selling the Chinese made products.
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December 23, 2024
House Report Says Gaetz Paid For Sex, Accepted Gifts
Former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz regularly paid women for sex, including with one 17-year-old girl, used illicit drugs and accepted a trip to the Bahamas in excess of permissible gift amounts, according to a report released Monday morning by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ethics.
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December 20, 2024
Panel Baffled Why Prosecutor Left Holding Bag In Weed Case
A Michigan state judge who stuck the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office with a $66,000 bill for marijuana destroyed by police and said he'd "let the Court of Appeals sort it out" left those appellate judges scratching their heads — and reversing his decision on Thursday.
Expert Analysis
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Lawyers With Disabilities Are Seeking Equity, Not Pity
Attorneys living with disabilities face extra challenges — including the need for special accommodations, the fear of stigmatization and the risk of being tokenized — but if given equitable opportunities, they can still rise to the top of their field, says Kate Reder Sheikh, a former attorney and legal recruiter at Major Lindsey & Africa.
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Opinion
Judicial Committee Best Venue For Litigation Funding Rules
The Advisory Committee on Civil Rules' recent decision to consider developing a rule for litigation funding disclosure is a welcome development, ensuring that the result will be the product of a thorough, inclusive and deliberative process that appropriately balances all interests, says Stewart Ackerly at Statera Capital.
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The Strategic Advantages Of Appointing A Law Firm CEO
The impact on law firms of the recent CrowdStrike outage underscores that the business of law is no longer merely about providing supplemental support for legal practice — and helps explain why some law firms are appointing dedicated, full-time CEOs to navigate the challenges of the modern legal landscape, says Jennifer Johnson at Calibrate Strategies.
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Series
Beekeeping Makes Me A Better Lawyer
The practice of patent law and beekeeping are not typically associated, but taking care of honeybees has enriched my legal practice by highlighting the importance of hands-on experience, continuous learning, mentorship and more, says David Longo at Oblon McClelland.
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Opinion
Legal Institutions Must Warn Against Phony Election Suits
With two weeks until the election, bar associations and courts have an urgent responsibility to warn lawyers about the consequences of filing unsubstantiated lawsuits claiming election fraud, says Elise Bean at the Carl Levin Center for Oversight and Democracy.
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How Cos. Can Build A Strong In-House Pro Bono Program
During this year’s pro bono celebration week, companies should consider some key pointers to grow and maintain a vibrant in-house program for attorneys to provide free legal services for the public good, says Mary Benton at Alston & Bird.
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Series
Home Canning Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Making my own pickles and jams requires seeing a process through from start to finish, as does representing clients from the start of a dispute at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board through any appeals to the Federal Circuit, says attorney Kevin McNish.
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Use The Right Kind Of Feedback To Help Gen Z Attorneys
Generation Z associates bring unique perspectives and expectations to the workplace, so it’s imperative that supervising attorneys adapt their feedback approach in order to help young lawyers learn and grow — which is good for law firms, too, says Rachael Bosch at Fringe Professional Development.
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Opinion
Congress Can And Must Enact A Supreme Court Ethics Code
As public confidence in the U.S. Supreme Court dips to historic lows following reports raising conflict of interest concerns, Congress must exercise its constitutional power to enact a mandatory and enforceable code of ethics for the high court, says Muhammad Faridi, president of the New York City Bar Association.
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Series
The Pop Culture Docket: Justice Lebovits On Gilbert And Sullivan
Characters in the 19th century comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan break the rules of good lawyering by shamelessly throwing responsible critical thought to the wind, providing hilarious lessons for lawyers and judges on how to avoid a surfeit of traps and tribulations, say acting New York Supreme Court Justice Gerald Lebovits and law student Tara Scown.
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State Of The States' AI Legal Ethics Landscape
Over the past year, several state bar associations, as well as the American Bar Association, have released guidance on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in legal practice, all of which share overarching themes and some nuanced differences, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law Group.
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8 Childhood Lessons That Can Help You Be A Better Attorney
A new school year is underway, marking a fitting time for attorneys to reflect on some fundamental life lessons from early childhood that offer a framework for problems that no legal textbook can solve, say Chris Gismondi and Chris Campbell at DLA Piper.
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Opinion
This Election, We Need To Talk About Court Process
In recent decades, the U.S. Supreme Court has markedly transformed judicial processes — from summary judgment standards to notice pleadings — which has, in turn, affected individuals’ substantive rights, and we need to consider how the upcoming presidential election may continue this pattern, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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Series
Playing Diplomacy Makes Us Better Lawyers
Similar to the practice of law, the rules of Diplomacy — a strategic board game set in pre-World War I Europe — are neither concise nor without ambiguity, and weekly gameplay with our colleagues has revealed the game's practical applications to our work as attorneys, say Jason Osborn and Ben Bevilacqua at Winston & Strawn.
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Mental Health First Aid: A Brief Primer For Attorneys
Amid a growing body of research finding that attorneys face higher rates of mental illness than the general population, firms should consider setting up mental health first aid training programs to help lawyers assess mental health challenges in their colleagues and intervene with compassion, say psychologists Shawn Healy and Tracey Meyers.