This post was originally published on this site.
Join NY Cannabis Insider for our next full-day conference on Nov. 16 at the Sonesta White Plains.
Jeffrey Hoffman is a New York City-based attorney who hosts “Ask Me Anything about Cannabis Legalization in New York” each week on LinkedIn. Hoffman and NY Cannabis Insider have partnered to bring those sessions into print in a Q&A format.
Hoffman’s practice focuses on cannabis industry clients, including licensees in the adult-use market, practitioners in the medical cannabis space, and cannabis adjacent product and service providers. He has a particular interest in social and economic equity cannabis license applicants, and he also informs and assists those convicted of cannabis offenses in getting such convictions expunged from their record. He can be reached at info@420jurist.com.
The following AMA from Oct. 24 has been edited for length and clarity. Hoffman’s next AMA is on Nov. 8 at 4:20 p.m.
What’s your application update?
The deadlines have been moved back to November 17 and December 18, respectively. That puts us into the week before Christmas, so I would expect the overwhelming majority of licensing activity will happen in ‘24. It is possible that the OCM will want to get out a few (likely non-provisional) licenses before the end of the year, but I’m not sure I’d bet on it.
For those of you that remember the Variscite lawsuit, they didn’t file until the application period closed and Michigan dude had actual damages. So I would anticipate that whatever lawsuits we will see in this round will come in late December or some point in January.
What about the “intoxicating hemp products” lawsuit?
NORTH FORK DISTRIBUTION, INC. et al v. NEW YORK STATE CANNABIS CONTROL BOARD et. al. is currently pending in front of Judge Marcelle.
The issue here is that the state created emergency regs requiring a ratio of 15:1 CBD or other cannabinoids to THC in the hemp products. A lot of fledgling businesses jumped into creating these hemp products which are now no longer allowed in New York.
I’ve heard a lot of opinions about this. Some people think the Farm Bill preempts it. But I’ve talked to some very smart people who think maybe it doesn’t and that maybe New York is actually allowed to have this prohibition. I don’t expect this to get resolved quickly.
Do you like dispensaries that look like Apple stores?
I’ll take all comers. Just because I have a preference for one thing or the other doesn’t mean I don’t celebrate and shop at all of them.
Each type of consumer will want a different kind of experience. I tend to prefer places that are more “lounge-like” but not super trendy, though I absolutely believe that we need “Apple-like” stores where the appearance of the store gives confidence to “cannabis curious” shoppers.
But like most Americans who have been getting high since Reagan, my formative experience in retail cannabis was in Amsterdam, and I really like the coffee shop model there with every kind of space you can imagine.
What is your favorite coffee shop in Amsterdam?
Tweede Kamer (which also happens to be the name of one of the chambers of the Dutch Parliament). Get the Polm.