Oral arguments set to begin in landmark Controlled Substances Act case

As talk of rescheduling drags on, the focus may turn back to the lawsuit filed by Canna Provisions and Verano (OTC: VRNOF) in Massachusetts. The two companies, along with Gyasi Sellers and Wiseacre Farm, stirred up the cannabis industry in October 2023 when the group hired well-known lawyer David Boies to challenge the constitutionality of the Controlled Substances Act.

There has been much back and forth between the parties, as the government has tried repeatedly to get the case dismissed. However, a federal judge in Massachusetts has now set May 22 as the date for oral arguments to begin in the case.

Dismissal attempts

In January, the Department of Justice first tried to get the case dismissed, saying that the group lacked standing and that their complaint proves there is no realistic threat of federal enforcement by the U.S. Department of Justice in states with regulated commercial cannabis reform, among other issues.

Green Market Report wrote that the DOJ argued that the government hadn’t kept them from growing or selling cannabis and that fear of “risk of prosecution” for working with a federally illegal substance isn’t enough of a harm.

Then in March, the companies replied that the federal government’s policy had changed so dramatically since 2005 that the justices’ analysis from that year no longer applied, referring to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2005 decision in a case known as Gonzales v. Raich. In that case, the majority of justices ruled that the federal prohibition on cannabis overrode state legalization efforts. The court has declined to revisit Gonzales.

The reply stated: “The ground-shaking shifts in marijuana regulation … together with the nation’s long history of marijuana cultivation and use prior to the CSA, demonstrate the widely-held understanding that Plaintiffs’ marijuana activities implicate a liberty interest that requires protection.”

It went on to say, “Today, almost every state permits some form of marijuana that is illegal under federal law, and the majority of the nation’s population lives in states where both medical and adult-use marijuana is legal.”

On April 5, the DOJ again asked the court to dismiss the case. This time the government stated that diversion into illicit markets is happening even in states with tight controls and that regulating the in-state market affects the interstate market.

The government added that it retains a legitimate interest in curtailing the cannabis trade, even if it is no longer aimed at eradicating that trade as it was in 2005.

The cannabis companies then submitted a request for oral arguments before the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, Western Division, according to Marijuana Moment. The DOJ said it had no position on the request for oral arguments.