Matt Maurer speaks to The Leaf about unlicensed crops and how they could count as ‘illicit cannabis’
Overview
Cannabis grown in unlicensed rooms by cannabis producer CannTrust could meet the legal definition of “illicit cannabis,” lawyers say, but an exception in the law means Canadian consumers don’t need to worry about possessing that forbidden weed.
“Illicit cannabis is defined in the (federal) legislation as ‘cannabis that is or was sold produced or distributed by a person prohibited from doing so’ under the (Cannabis) Act,” said Matt Maurer, vice-chairman of the cannabis law group at Torkin Manes LLP in Toronto.
Since the Cannabis Act outlaws commercial cannabis production without a licence attached to a specific production site, Maurer explained, any cannabis grown outside the scope of those licences would technically qualify as illicit.
That’s exactly what appears to have happened at CannTrust, an Ontario-based licensed producer which disclosed Monday that it grew cannabis in five unlicensed rooms of its Pelham, Ont. greenhouse between October 2018 and March 2019.
To read the complete article, please visit The Leaf.
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A partner in our Litigation & Dispute Resolution Group, and Chair of the firm’s Cannabis and Franchise Law Groups, Matt brings more than 17 years of experience to a wide range of clients. View bio
Partner and Chair, Cannabis and Franchise Law Groups
