Blog Posts in 2017

Hawaii MMJ Patients Instructed to "Voluntarily Surrender" Firearms to Honolulu Police Department

Charles Feldmann

Medical-marijuana cardholders have thirty days to “voluntarily surrender” their firearms, according to a letter sent by the Honolulu Police Department to MMJ patients last month. Currently, Hawaii’s state statutes include any person who is “prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law” from ...

Charles Feldmann Selected for Prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award

Feldmann Nagel, LLC

Announcing the Lifetime Achievement selection of Charles Feldmann among America’s Top 100 Attorneys®. Lifetime Achievement selection to America’s Top 100 Attorneys® is by invitation only and is reserved to identify the nation’s most exceptional attorneys whose accomplishments and impact on the legal profession merit a ...

Interview With FN's Lisa Pittman Featured In Dallas News

Charles Feldmann

Is it inherently Texan to legalize marijuana? July 5, 2017 (The original can be found here.) By Dom DiFurio, Web Producer Lisa Pittman is one of the first attorneys in Texas to specialize in medical marijuana law. She came to the industry not from the recreational side, but as a mother seeking treatment for her child with epilepsy. Pittman ...

FN Attorney Lisa Pittman Featured In Houstonia Magazine

Charles Feldmann

Meet the First Lady of Texas Cannabis Law (For the original article on Houstonia.com, please click here.) Houston native Lisa L. Pittman is the state’s first attorney specializing in medical marijuana law. By Sarah Rufca Nielsen 6/22/2017 at 8:00am Published in the July 2017 issue of Houstonia SOME DAYS ARE LONGER AND MORE TRYING THAN OTHERS ...

FBI Agents Posing as Medical-Marijuana Investors

Charles Feldmann

According to news reports, FBI agents have been posing as medical-marijuana business investors as part of larger ploys to investigate political pay-to-play schemes. One in particular – an agent who utilized the alias “Mike Sweets” as part of FBI operations – has been involved in two investigations to date. On both occasions, ...

Attorney Feldmann Speaks on Potential Federal Upheaval of Marijuana Companies

Charles Feldmann

Thanks to anti-cannabis individuals in the newest administration, there is a chance the marijuana business will be adversely affected--harkening back to a series of restrictions such as those in 2009. Marijuana business lawyer Charles Feldmann, a former DEA agent, believes this is a cause for concern. If the administration follows through with ...

Attorney Feldmann Speaks on Possible Endangerment of Marijuana Federal Policies

Charles Feldmann

Recently, it has been brought to light that there is a possibility of legal protections aimed for marijuana business owners to be at risk of eradication. Anti-cannabis members of the administration are seeking to bring the laws back to 2009--an undesirable situation for all involved. Marijuana business lawyer Charles Feldmann spoke on the matter, ...

UPDATE: TIMING OF CALIFORNIA'S EMERGENCY MARIJUANA REGULATIONS ANNOUNCED

Charles Feldmann

Regulations for commercial medicinal and adult-use marijuana in California are slated to be published in the fall of 2017, according to a Department of Consumer Affairs’ Bureau of Cannabis Control (“DCABCC”) announcement on July 26, 2017. The implementation date for the issuance of medicinal and adult-use licenses under the ...

Are the IRS and SEC Stepping in for the DEA?

Charles Feldmann

While the marijuana industry’s attention has remained focused on what the new Trump administration means for state-level cannabis legalization – specifically on whether Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a vehement anti-marijuana crusader, will instigate a federal crack-down against states that have legalized marijuana and implemented ...

DOJ and States with Medical Marijuana

Charles Feldmann

Congress recently approved the FY2017 budget, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017. Contained within the budget was the renewal prohibiting the Department of Justice from using appropriated money to prosecute medical marijuana "use, distribution, possession, or cultivation" so long as each of those actions were accomplished pursuant to ...

Colorado Governor Meets with Sessions about Marijuana

Charles Feldmann

According to The Denver Post, Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper met with Attorney General Jeff Sessions last week in Washington, D.C. to discuss the new administration’s federal policies on marijuana – and how it plans to enforce them. Citing Colorado’s regulatory scheme, Hickenlooper reportedly told the new AG that he believed ...

UPDATE: CALIFORNIA'S ADULT USE OF MARIJUANA ACT (PROPOSITION 64)

Charles Feldmann

In November, 2016, I wrote a blog summarizing some of the important aspects of California’s Adult Use of Marijuana Act (“Act”). This blog serves to update you on California’s efforts to implement the Act and what prospective licensees can do prior to the license application process. Under the Act, the Bureau of Marijuana ...

New Memo from A.G. Sessions Directs Prosecutors to Attack "Violent Crime"

Charles Feldmann

In a memorandum released by the Department of Justice this week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions instructed federal prosecutors to prioritize the identification and prosecution of “violent criminals” under federal law. The directive is likely related to another memo by Sessions only a few weeks ago, in which he rescinded former President ...

Trump Press Secretary Addresses Marijuana Legalization

Charles Feldmann

The Trump administration issued its first official statements on the national marijuana industrythis Thursday, when reporters asked White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer for details on whether theDepartment of Justice plans to enforce federal drug laws in states that have legalized cannabis. While Spicer did not address specifics regarding the ...

Israel Considers Exporting Medical Marijuana

Charles Feldmann

Exporting medical marijuana may soon be on the horizon for Israel. According to Yediot Ahronot, Israel’s Committee of Directors General plans to recommend cannabis exportation in the next few weeks. The committee, which consists of the Ministries of Finance, Justice, Public Security, and Health, has additionally considered using funds from ...

This Week in Marijuana Law: The Global Market

Charles Feldmann

Canada medical marijuana grower Tilray has confirmed another export deal with a cannabis company licensed by the Chilean government, becoming the first foreign mover in overseas markets. While this is a big move in the emergence of a new global marijuana market, it is also a reminder of how cannabis companies in the United States are lagging behind ...

Federal Risk Mitigation

Charles Feldmann

As the senior team leader in our law firm’s cannabis practice group I have been recommending caution, awareness and the ability to quickly pivot - to all of our firm’s marijuana clients. Managing a client’s federal risk in this industry is something that requires vigilance and daily analysis and has been the top priority of my law ...