Cannabis Practitioners Group
Interested in receiving content and communications from the Cannabis Practitioners Group?
Cannabis Practitioners Group Officers
Cannabis Practitioners Group Mission Statement
The Cannabis Practitioners Group (CPG) of the California Lawyers Association is a CLA-wide group of voluntary attorneys who currently – or would like to – practice law in service of the cannabis industry and movement in California. The mission of the CPG is to:
- Provide legal education on cannabis law issues to California lawyers who are not already practicing in this area.
- Develop networking opportunities among current cannabis law practitioners and other attorneys and professionals whose work may cross-over with cannabis law issues.
- Support California law students and newer attorneys who are interested in practicing law within the cannabis industry and movement in California.
- Articulate policy positions of California lawyers on legislative and regulatory issues impacting the cannabis industry and movement.
Upcoming Events
California Legislation 2025
The 2025 California Legislative Session convened on January 6, 2025, and it adjourned on September 13, 2025.
| Bill No. | Summary | Status |
|---|---|---|
| AB 1332 (Ahrens) | To authorize a licensed micro business with an M-license whose licensed activities include retail sale, distribution, and outdoor cultivation to directly ship medicinal cannabis to a medicinal cannabis patient in the state, and to authorize free medicinal cannabis or medicinal cannabis products provided to medicinal cannabis patients in compliance with MAUCRSA to be shipped to those patients by a licensed micro business with an M-license. | 10/11/25Â VETOED Vetoed by Governor. |
| AB 632 (Hart) | To streamline the process for a local agency to obtain a court judgment for payment of fine and penalties for unlicensed commercial cannabis activity, and to establish a procedure to collect administrative fines or penalties by lien upon the parcel of land on which the unlicensed commercial cannabis activity occurred. | 10/11/25 VETOED Vetoed by Governor. |
| AB 1103 (Ward) | To streamline California’s process for state approval of clinical research involving Schedule I and II controlled substances, such as cannabis and psychedelics, focusing especially on federally-sanctioned drug trials and studies of mental health treatments. | 10/10/25 ENACTED Chaptered by Secretary of State – Chapter 571, Statutes of 2025. |
| SB 378 (Wiener) | To make online cannabis and hemp marketplaces strictly liable for damages; to require online sellers to create a reporting system enabling people to flag an unlicensed product or seller; and to require marketplaces that don’t verify California cannabis seller licenses to post a disclaimer. | 10/06/25 ENACTED Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 411, Statutes of 2025. |
| AB 8 (Aguiar-Curry) | To authorize DCC licensees to manufacture, distribute, or sell products that contain industrial hemp or cannabinoids, extracts, or derivatives from industrial hemp, and to require out-of-state hemp manufacturers who produce an industrial hemp product that is a food or beverage for sale in this state to register with the DCC. | 09/22/25Â Â ENACTED Chaptered by Secretary of State – Chapter 127, Statutes of 2025. |
| AB 564 (Haney) | To reduce the current 19% cannabis excise tax rate to 15% of the gross receipts of any retail sale by a cannabis retailer, beginning October 1, 2025. | 09/22/25 ENACTED Chaptered by Secretary of State – Chapter 127, Statutes of 2025. |
California Regulations
California Case Law
| Court | Case |
|---|---|
| Supreme Court of the United States | Medical Marijuana, Inc. v. Horn (Apr. 2, 2025) |
| California Court of Appeal, 4th District | Murphy v. AAA Auto Insurance of Southern California (Jan. 24, 2025) |
| United States Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit | Thomas v. County of Humboldt (Dec. 30, 2024) |
California Ethics Opinions
| Bar Association | Ethics Opinion |
|---|---|
| State Bar of California | Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct Opinion Formal Opinion No. 2020-202 (May 2020) |
| Los Angeles County Bar Association | Professional Responsibility and Ethics Committee Opinion No. 527 (Aug. 2015) |
| Bar Association of San Francisco | Ethics Committee Opinion No. 2015-1 (Jun. 2015) |
Webinars and Other Resources
Antitrust and Consumer Protection Law
Business Law
Original Air Date: 4/27/2023
California Cannabis Social Equity Provisions and the Dormant Commerce Clause
Original Air Date: 11/8/2023
California Cannabis Corporate Law: Navigating the Way Forward
Civility in the Legal Profession
Original Date: January 22, 2025
Navigating Cannabis Law and Arbitration: Real-World Challenges
Competence
Criminal Law
Original Air Date: 8/5/2021
True Color of Marijuana – Stirring the Racial Justice Pot
Environmental Law
Original Air Date: 8/12/2021
The California Cannabis Rush: The Interplay Between Cannabis, Environmental Laws and Regulations
Family Law
Intellectual Property Law
Original Air Date: 10/10/20
Cannabis Intellectual Property Law Nuts & Bolts
Original Air Date: 11/9/2020
Shelter In Place Institute: Cannabis & IP Law Litigation 2020 Update
Original Air Date: 3/10/2020
Trademarks & Cannabis Law
Original Air Date: 1/29/2020
Introduction to IP & Cannabis Law
Original Air Date: 10/21/2020
Trade Secrets in Cannabis
Original Air Date: 11/10/2021
45th Annual IP Institute: Shifting Tokes — Cannabis-Related Patents in a Changing World
Original Air Date: 4/22/2021
Rolling with Patents: IP in Cannabis and Recent Cannabis Patent Litigation
Original Air Date: 7/1/2021
Summer Cannabis (Law) Series: Protecting Cannabis IP in an Uncertain Legal Landscape
Intellectual Property Cannabis Interest Group
Participate in the IP Property Cannabis Interest Group which offers frequent webinar presentations and community discussions of hot topics and practice tips.
The Interest Groups of the IP Section are open to all IP Section members interested in participating. The groups have regular meetings open to all members of the IP Section. They also present educational programs focused on the needs of various IP practices.
All of the interest groups send periodic e-mail bulletins to their members. As an IP Law Section member, you can sign up for the IP Cannabis Interest Group to receive notifications in all areas that interest you.
For more information, contact the Intellectual Property Law Section at IP@calawyers.org.
Announcements of meetings and CLE programs are included in Inevitable Disclosures, which is sent to all members of the Section.
Not a member of the IP Section and want to join the Interest Group? Join IP Section Here and then sign up for the Interest Group Here.
Webinar: ARIPO, OAPI, AfCFTA … What do US practitioners need to know about IP rights in the African region
This program intends to give our audience an overview of the different intellectual property treaties in the African region. Our speaker will share the basic terms of the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) for English-speaking countries, the African Intellectual Property Organization (Organisation Africaine de la Propiete Industrielle (OAPI) for the French-speaking countries, as well as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Protocol on Intellectual Property Rights poised to Harmonize IP policies across all the African Union (AU) member countries.
Webinar: Time Out: The Story of the Peruvian Pisco
This program is intended to give the audience the Peruvian’s perspective on the worldwide legal battle for the registration of PISCO as a geographical indication.
IP in Entertainment and Media Conference
The Intellectual Property Law Section is presenting a half-day in-person IP in Entertainment and Media Conference on November 6, 2025, at the Hyatt Centric Delfina Santa Monica.
We are committed to accessibility! Virtual events are equipped with closed captioning. To request an in-person accommodation, send us a note at accessibility@calawyers.org or contact us at 916-516-1760 for assistance.
International Law and Immigration
Original Air Date: 1/19/2022
Cannabis and Hemp: Opportunities and Pitfalls for the Foreign Investor
Original Air Date: Summer 2019
Immigrant Investors and Cannabis Business Opportunities in the United States
Labor and Employment Law
Original Air Date: 9/3/2020
Work and Weed: What Lawyers Need to Know about Cannabis in the Workplace
Law Practice Management and Technology
Legal Ethics
Litigation
Original Date: January 22, 2025
Navigating Cannabis Law and Arbitration: Real-World Challenges
New Lawyers
Original Air Date: 2/7/2025
Practicing Law in the Cannabis and Hemp Space in California
Privacy Law
Original Air Date: 11/19/2024
Privacy Law Issues Confronting the Cannabis and Hemp Economy
Public Law
Original Air Date: 10/22/2021
Hot Topics in Cannabis Licensing and Regulatory Activity-What Every Cannabis Lawyer Should Know
Real Property Law
Original Air Date: 8/5/2021
Summer Cannabis (Law) Series: Practical Advice for Representing Clients in the Sale and Lease of Real Estate for Cannabis Use
Original Release Date: 2020
Attorney Ethics and Cannabis: Conflicts of Laws, Conflicts of Interest, and Attorney-Client Privilege for Cannabis Practitioners
Recognition and Elimination of Bias
Original Air Date: 7/8/2025
Cannabis Social Equity: How It Started and How It’s Going
Solo and Small Firm
Original Air Date: 9/25/2024
Cannabis and Hemp Law as it Applies to Solo and Small Firm Lawyers