{"id":8085,"date":"2018-02-16T01:19:44","date_gmt":"2018-02-16T01:19:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com?p=2954312&amp;preview_id=2954312"},"modified":"2018-02-16T01:19:44","modified_gmt":"2018-02-16T01:19:44","slug":"federal-appeals-court-hears-hemp-industry-lawsuit-challenging-deas-position-on-cbd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/federal-appeals-court-hears-hemp-industry-lawsuit-challenging-deas-position-on-cbd\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal appeals court hears hemp industry lawsuit challenging DEA\u2019s position on CBD"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"wp_fb_like_button\" style=\"margin:5px 0 5px 5px;float:right;height:100px;\"><script src=\"http:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/all.js#xfbml=1\"><\/script><fb:like href=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/federal-appeals-court-hears-hemp-industry-lawsuit-challenging-deas-position-on-cbd\/\" send=\"true\" layout=\"standard\" width=\"450\" show_faces=\"false\" font=\"arial\" action=\"like\" colorscheme=\"light\"><\/fb:like><\/div><div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"large-10 large-centered small-12 columns\">\n<div class=\"entry-meta-date\">Published: Feb 15, 2018, 5:24 pm \u2022 Updated: Feb 16, 2018, 10:29 am <span class=\"single-comments-link\" \/><\/div>\n<p class=\"byline\">By <span class=\"author\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/author\/awallace\/\" rel=\"author\">Alicia Wallace<\/a><\/span><em>, The Cannabist Staff<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The fate of a federal rule viewed by hemp advocates as an existential threat to their emerging industry is now in the hands of a three-judge panel.<\/p>\n<p>The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco heard oral arguments Thursday in the Hemp Industries Association\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2017\/01\/13\/hemp-dea-extracts-marijuana-cbd-judicial-review\/71387\/\">petition<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2017\/04\/05\/hemp-lawsuit-federal-court-dea-rule-marijuana-extracts\/76635\/\">challenging<\/a> the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration\u2019s January 2017 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2016\/12\/15\/dea-cbd-new-rule-marijuana-extracts\/69550\/\">rule creating a Controlled Substances Code Number<\/a> for \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2016\/12\/28\/dea-marihuana-spelling-history\/69651\/\">marihuana extracts<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>DEA officials claim the rule is administrative in nature and helps the agency better track research and meet international drug treaty requirements.<\/p>\n<p>Attorneys for a hemp industry trade association and hemp businesses argue that the DEA conflated the terms \u201cmarijuana\u201d and \u201ccannabis,\u201d ultimately creating a rule that can be interpreted as scheduling cannabis and cannabinoids as illegal substances. They blame the rule for a rash of seizures of cannabidiol products.<\/p>\n<p>The DEA\u2019s rule epitomizes \u201cgovernment overreach\u201d and stands in opposition to intervening legislation, Robert Hoban, a Denver-based attorney representing the hemp industry, told the 9th Circuit Court judges.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere was a seismic shift in United States cannabis policy in 2014 with the enactment of the Farm Bill, specifically Section 7606, involving industrial hemp,\u201d said Hoban, a principal of Hoban Law Group. \u201cAnd that seems to have created some confusion, perhaps, with the Drug Enforcement Administration.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hoban claimed that confusion extended to other federal, state and local enforcement agencies, which have since seized products such as hemp-derived, CBD-rich extracts.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve seen this drug code utilized week after week since it\u2019s enactment to seize, to cause criminal enforcement against lawful operators who require no DEA registration,\u201d Hoban said.<\/p>\n<p>Sarah Carroll, an attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice, countered that the language of the rule, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov\/schedules\/marijuana\/m_extract_7350.html\">follow-up guidance<\/a> and court briefings expressly state that the code number applies only to the controlled parts of the cannabis plant that are within the Controlled Substances Act definition of marijuana.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt does not apply at all to the parts that Congress exempted,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>If other enforcement agencies acted out of step with DEA-issued rules and guidance, the \u201cremedy would be to challenge that seizure,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>The judges will review the arguments and briefs filed in the case, which include <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2018\/01\/12\/cbd-hemp-extracts-dea-congress\/96683\/\">an amicus brief filed last month by 28 members of Congress<\/a>. It could be months before an opinion is released, Hoban Law Group attorneys have said.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Timeline<\/h3>\n<h4>Hemp Industries Association et al v. Drug Enforcement Administration<\/h4>\n<p><strong>December 2016: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2016\/12\/15\/dea-cbd-new-rule-marijuana-extracts\/69550\/\">New DEA rule on extracts, CBD causes commotion in cannabis industry<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>January 2017: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2017\/01\/13\/hemp-dea-extracts-marijuana-cbd-judicial-review\/71387\/\">Legal challenge filed against DEA\u2019s new marijuana extract rule<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>April 2017: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2017\/04\/05\/hemp-lawsuit-federal-court-dea-rule-marijuana-extracts\/76635\/\">Hemp lawsuit in federal court alleges DEA overstepped on \u201cextracts\u201d rule<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>June 2017: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2017\/06\/02\/dea-hemp-industry-challenge-drug-code-marihuana-extracts-farm-bill\/80687\/\">DEA seeks dismissal of hemp industry lawsuit fighting drug code for \u201cmarihuana extracts\u201d<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>July 2017: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2017\/07\/05\/cbd-hemp-dea-marijuana-extracts-federal-lawsuit\/82623\/\">With DEA digging in its heels on \u201cmarihuana extracts,\u201d legality of CBD oil on trial in federal courts<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>July 2017: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2017\/07\/05\/dea-statement-cbd-hemp-farm-bill-controlled-substances-act\/83100\/\">DEA statement on CBD, hemp products and the Farm Bill<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>July 2017: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2017\/07\/07\/dea-statement-cbd-hemp-farm-bill-cw-hemp-response\/83322\/\">CW Hemp\u2019s Joel Stanley says DEA position statement on CBD, hemp and Farm Bill \u201creckless and illegal<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>January 2018: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2018\/01\/12\/cbd-hemp-extracts-dea-congress\/96683\/\">Hemp industry lawsuit challenging DEA\u2019s position on CBD picks up support of 28 U.S. legislators<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&#013; &#013; <\/p>\n<div class=\"entry-meta-tags\">\n<div class=\"entry-tags\">Topics: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/9th-u-s-circuit-court-of-appeals\/\" rel=\"tag\">9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/bob-hoban\/\" rel=\"tag\">Bob Hoban<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/cannabidiol\/\" rel=\"tag\">cannabidiol<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/cannabidiol-oil\/\" rel=\"tag\">cannabidiol oil<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/cbd\/\" rel=\"tag\">cbd<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/cbd-extracts\/\" rel=\"tag\">cbd extracts<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/dea\/\" rel=\"tag\">DEA<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/drug-enforcement-administration\/\" rel=\"tag\">Drug Enforcement Administration<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/extracts\/\" rel=\"tag\">extracts<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/hemp\/\" rel=\"tag\">hemp<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/hemp-extracts\/\" rel=\"tag\">hemp extracts<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/tag\/hemp-industries-association\/\" rel=\"tag\">Hemp Industries Association<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-meta-author\">\n<div class=\"authorimage\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/author\/awallace\/\" rel=\"author\"><img src=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/federal-appeals-court-hears-hemp-industry-lawsuit-challenging-deas-position-on-cbd.jpg\" class=\"authormug\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<p class=\"author-desc\">Alicia Wallace joined The Cannabist in July 2016, covering national marijuana policy and business. In her 14 years as a business news reporter, her coverage has spanned topics such as the economy, natural foods, airlines, biotech, retail,&#8230;<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><!-- .row --> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DEA officials say a rule on CBD is innocuous and administrative. Hemp advocates claim it&#8217;s the opening salvo in a federal offensive against the American hemp industry. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7175,531,52,330,6811,6897,233,55,6813,77,5667,9,5019,1777,261,1,3,7329,61,1736],"tags":[7178,3105,2632,2908,6816,6898,2811,2635,6818,2655,5673,5022,4345,2839,7330],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8085"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8085"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8085\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8085"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8085"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8085"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}