Cannabis, the Constitution, and the courts straining between federal, state laws

Cannabis Law

By Alan W. Nicgorski and Jon M. Casadont

Alan W. Nicgorski is the managing partner of Hansen Reynolds LLC’s Chicago office. His practice focuses on complex commercial, intellectual property and employment litigation. He has also represented cannabis companies in connection with challenges to state licensing practices. Jon M. Casadont is Chief Legal Officer of Sozo Companies, Inc., a vertically integrated cannabis company with its flagship cultivation and processing facility in Warren, Michigan, with retail locations throughout the state.

Posted August 12, 2021 11:19 AM

Given the many high-profile opinions issued by the Supreme Court this past term, it is not surprising that Justice Clarence Thomas’ short statement respecting the denial of certiorari in the case of Standing Akimbo, LLC v. United States garnered little attention. In Standing Akimbo, the petitioner, an operator of a medical cannabis dispensary in Colorado, challenged the IRS’s practice of not allowing cannabis businesses (operating legally under state law) to deduct business expenses to the same extent as other businesses …

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