Cannabis Issues and Trends

At the same time that this country is coming out of almost two and a half years of setbacks and restrictions related to COVID -19, many states are now allowing cannabis growth industries to arise. Sales from cannabis were $20,000,000.00 in 2020, and are expected to exceed $26,000,000.00 in 2021. Research indicates that the legal cannabis market may grow 20-30% per year and have an annual value of approximately $50,000,000.00 in sales by the year 2026.

While the medical marijuana industry is expanding its involvement pertaining to an increase in the number of maladies, an increasing number of states are now permitting recreational use as well.  The direction of this growth is obvious.  The Government is also getting involved in an effort to reinvest millions of dollars of tax revenues from the cannabis industry into the minority communities that the war on drugs has historically victimized.  At the time, 19 States have passed laws permitting recreational and medical cannabis, and 34 states allow medicinal use.

From a lawyer's point of view, cannabis related companies and industries will need developing advice on intellectual property issues , employment issues , tax issues, license and regulatory compliance, lending and financial transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and a host of other specialty practice areas

Different size law firms will take on different size legal issues as this industry expands.  While the larger law firms will address the types of issues as set forth above, the small local attorneys will need to develop their practices and procedures pertaining to the representation and defense of individuals that will, no doubt, have an increasing run in with the law related to their cannabis ownership and use.