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A lawsuit in which one legal Central New York marijuana retailer is trying to keep another from operating is on hold while a settlement in the case is attempted.
The lawsuit was filed March 6 by TJās Cannabis of Liverpool. It accuses the stateās Office of Cannabis Management of illegally barring TJās from using a preferred location in Clay, then allowing a competitor, Raven Dispensaries, to open there instead.
The lawsuit named the cannabis agency as defendant, but requested the judge issue an injunction keeping Raven from opening. Raven opened for business in the disputed location in Market Fair North Plaza on Route 31 a few days after the lawsuit was filed. Raven is not a defendant in the case.
A hearing on the request for an injunction was to have been held this week. But TJās lawyer, Dean DiPilato, sent a letter to Supreme Court Justice James Murphy asking for a postponement of any action while TJās and the state agency work out a settlement.
āThe parties have conferred, entered into settlement discussions, and have come to the agreement set forth below: Petitioner withdraws its request for preliminary injunctive relief in this matter,ā DiPilato, of Centolella Law of DeWitt, wrote. āAs such, the parties jointly and respectfully request that the Court take any deadlines with respect thereto off of the Courtās calendar.ā
DiPilatoās letter said the parties would send the court a status update within 60 days.
TJās, owned by TJ Lewis, has been open since December in the Longbranch Park Plaza at 4205 Long Branch Road. Thatās in a relatively out-of-the-way spot a block or so off Route 57 in Clay.
But Lewis said he had been working since last year to secure a location in the Market Fair North Plaza at 4148 Route 31. Thatās a busier spot, near the exits from Interstate 481. The shopping plaza is anchored by a Staples and other stores.
In an affidavit supporting the lawsuit, Lewis said he was ādevastated and confusedā by the news that Raven would be allowed to open in the spot he had been denied. He claims he lost money and time seeking the Liverpool location, and his business there is not as strong as it could have been in the Clay location.
Lewisā lawsuit is based on the cannabis office licensing process, and specifically a program in which the state was offering financial aid and site selection to dispensaries through the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY). That help was offered, but not required, for a shop to open.
Lewis claims the state denied his proposal for a shop in Suite 903 in the Market Fair North several times in 2023 because it would have been within 1,000 feet of a location secured and reserved for dispensaries getting DASNY help.
Lewisā lawsuit claims Raven did not get DASNY aid. That forms part of the basis for the lawsuitās claim that the state cannabis office acted unfairly and illegally. The lawsuit also claims the cannabis agency did not alert Lewis that a DASNY-supported business would not be opening and that the space would therefore be available.
Raven Dispensaries co-owner Josh Jeanneret said today he had not heard that TJās and the state were working on a settlement. He maintains that Raven is being unfairly included in the case.
Since it opened on March 10, Ravenās business has been good, Jeanneret said.
āIf he (Lewis) has a complaint against the state, we have nothing to do with that,ā said Jeanneret, whose partner in Raven is Ben Duerr. āWe have a legal business and a valid license.ā
The state Office of Cannabis Management does not comment on pending litigation.
Don Cazentre writes for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Reach him at dcazentre@nyup.com, or follow him at NYup.com, on Twitter or Facebook.