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March 27, 2019 | 3
Cannabis Law Panel Discusses Budding New Industry Four lawyers play twenty questions ERNEST TAM (1L)*
PHOTO CAPTION: LEFT TO RIGHT: RUSSEL HALL, SAM CARSLEY, JONATHAN SHERMAN, MARK CAVDAR, BEN BARRETT (1L), ERNEST TAM (1L). PHOTO CREDIT: ILYA MOTAMEDI.
On March 7, the newly-minted Cannabis Law Club hosted its inaug ura l event w ith four panelists—t wo in-house law yers and t wo from ful l-ser v ice f ir ms—who prov ided a d iverse range of opinions on the current state of cannabis law in Canada. The panelists gave some insight on what it is to “pract ice cannabis law”, the d irect ion of the cannabis industr y, and some current and future lega l issues in the f ield. The event was wel l-attended and the aud ience was wel l-fed w ith sweet-and-sour chicken and chow mein. W hen asked to comment on the heav y restr ict ions placed on the industr y, the panel genera l ly ag reed that the current reg ime is pr udent. Russel l Ha l l, an A ssociate at Dav ies Ward Phil lips & Vineberg L L P, a lso commented that a lthough “restr ict ions are ver y t ight, the Cannabis Act is subject to rev iew after three years. Maybe at that t ime, it w il l be more libera lized.” However, Mark Cavdar, Director of L e-
ga l A f fairs at Aphr ia Inc., thinks that adopt ing the tobacco sa les and market ing reg ime for cannabis was the path of least resistance but is ult imately misa lig ned w ith the aims of lega lizat ion. “Cannabis is st il l sold like a bag of poison”, Cavdar commented in reference to the lack of brand ing on retail cannabis products, each af f ixed w ith a red stop sig n w ith a cannabis plant inside. “ We have to combat this st ig ma and current restr ict ions are not a lig ned w ith the goa ls of the system.” Jonathan Sher man, Par tner and Co Chair of Cannabis Group at Cassels Brock & Blackwel l L L P, remained opt imist ic in the de-st ig mat izat ion of cannabis. “No one k nows about cannabis and companies can’t adver t ise it nor infor m consumers… we have a few months of recreat ion, but not rea l ly. We don’t have any stores in Ontar io. Once we see what it is like to have stores, things w il l change from there and [the public percept ion of cannabis] w il l
probably shift away from something like tobacco to something more like a lcohol.” The panel had mixed feelings on the “g rey market” and il lega l mar ijuana d ispensar ies current ly in operat ion. Cavdar ack nowledged the presence of the g rey market, but stated that joints and mar ijuana buds w il l be quick ly outdated: “There w il l a lways be a dea ler, and some people w il l use them. But innovat ion in the industr y w il l cut the market. People won’t touch f lower in 10 years.” Hall highlighted the importance of accessibility and education, which was heavily lacking pre and post-legalization: “So many people went back to dealers. Many people think the grey market areas are legal but they are fully illegal. There needs to be better education on legitimate sources.” For law students that want to get involved in the cannabis-space, Ha l l suggested look ing up the actua l leg islat ion scheme to understand the reg ulat ions surround ing
the industr y, as wel l as subscr ibe to press releases from a l l the major cannabis companies to stay updated. Sherman adds that “cannabis law” is similar to “sports law” in that is related to many other areas of law, whether it be real estate, M&A, securities, or intellectual property. In this regard, lawyers from nearly every f ield of law have opportunities to work with cannabis, albeit to varying degrees. “Any highly regulated industry lets you move into cannabis”, Cavdar added, as he credited his previous in-house position at an international tobacco company in helping him get to his current role at Aphria. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the panelists and do not necessarily ref lect the off icial position of Aphria Inc., Canopy Growth Corporation, Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP, Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP, or the Cannabis Law Club. *Ernest Tam (1L) is an executive member of the Cannabis L aw Club.
