Thanks to Mark Hauser on his cannabis musings substack
So, imagine my delight when I learned that Curaleaf, one of the largest MSOs in the US, is arguing in a federal lawsuit that a jury’s $32 million verdict against it in a contract dispute should be tossed because, well, you know:
“Contracts to manufacture and distribute marijuana are unenforceable, period.”…
“It is irrelevant that Michigan permits the manufacture and sale of marijuana, as the parties plainly knew the transaction was federally illegal. Thus, [the plaintiff] was not justified in expecting a federal court to enforce the contract. Nor could the parties have justifiably expected even a Michigan court to enforce the contract.”…
“In short, there is no public interest in enforcing this agreement, and every interest against it.”
To be fair, it’s the right argument to make in federal court – should a federal court endorse illegal activities? Lawyers need to be zealous advocates for their clients, and the industry wallows in the morass of federal illegality, so it may as well try to take advantage of that fact when it can. And yet, the risk of not being able to enforce contracts in court (at least, federal court) has been a concern for the industry for years, and clearly remains a live issue.
Read the full post
https://cannabismusings.substack.com/p/cannabis-musings-march-28-2025
