On May 2, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued insightful guidance on its procedures for the examination of trademarks for cannabis-related goods and services. This guidance comes months after the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which decriminalized industrial hemp and CBD derived from industrial hemp.» Read More

Eric Alvarez, an Associate of law firm Norris McLaughlin, P.A., was quoted in “The Hazards of Hauling Hemp” by truckinginfo.com following his Legally Grown blog post, “Trucker Arrested for Industrial Hemp Transportation Demonstrates Legal Implications for the Future of Cannabis Enforcement and Testing.”

“Cannabis” is a general term used for both hemp and marijuana plants, [Eric] explain[s].» Read More

By now some of you may have heard about the truck driver that was arrested for transporting nearly 7,000 pounds of industrial hemp in the truck he was hauling from Oregon to Colorado. This simple case presents critically important legal and technological issues that will likely plague the legal cannabis industry for years to come: enforcement and testing.» Read More

While the “legal haze” of U.S. trademark registrations is undoubtedly challenging, brand owners of cannabis-related goods in the beauty and wellness industry are up to the challenge.  In the past five years, the trademark applications for these cannabis-related products have exponentially increased. » Read More

Trademark registration and enforcement are vital to any brand owner’s ability to build brand recognition and value.  However, trademark owners of cannabis goods and services will find trademark registration highly challenging because the United States Trademark Office’s current position is to deny registrations for goods and services that involve marijuana. » Read More