As our marijuana business compliance lawyers in Montana understand, one of the most important parts of the marijuana business is remaining compliant with local and state regulations. It is understandable that the compliance part may not be the most interesting aspect of this business. In fact, it may just be a box for you to check so that you can move on to doing what you are actually passionate about: working with the product and the customers. If this is the case, working with an attorney can help you to remain compliant in the business while doing what you love.
Why is this area of business so difficult?
When it comes to marijuana, there are many different regulations depending on the state as well as the jurisdiction. Laws regarding marijuana production and distribution are strict and while remaining compliant may seem like a good defensive strategy, it also helps make sure that the products you are offering customers are high quality and have met certain standards.
Marijuana has had a stigma surrounding it for many years, as Montana marijuana business compliance lawyers know. Many people who have grown the plant or distributed products made from marijuana for their business have come across legal issues even when they may not have crossed any legal boundaries. However, pressure from authorities may cause a person to shut down a business that was helping many people if they do not understand compliance laws.
What should I look for when it comes to lawyers?
You do not want just any attorney. In fact, while business compliance lawyers can be helpful, you should be even pickier than that. Because your business is so specific to marijuana and the regulations surrounding it, you want to make sure you are working with an attorney who specializes in marijuana compliance.
Why is compliance so important from the start?
When you start your business off on the right foot regarding compliance, you know you can continue putting the effort forth to remain compliant in the future. Further, when you stress this importance, you can set an example for your employees regarding how serious state compliance is for allowing your business to flourish.
Get Help From Silverman Law Office, PLLC!
Whether you are getting started in the marijuana business or already have a business established, one of the most important things you can do is back your business up with integrity and compliance. To see how we can help, contact our Montana marijuana business compliance lawyers today.
Marijuana Business Compliance
Marijuana business compliance lawyers Montana highly recommend that cannabis entrepreneurs familiarize themselves with all of the specifics of their state’s cannabis laws. Above all, achieving compliance means being able to fulfil the obligations that state governments place on newly legalized cannabis industry organizations.
Lawyers at Silverman law Office, PLLC recommend these Points to note as you start your journey through marijuana business compliance.
Every business in a regulated industry – like finance, healthcare, and cannabis – has to follow rules to continue doing business legally. The marijuana industry has a unique legal framework that differs from state to state. Cannabis dispensary owners should know what to expect from their state’s regulatory authorities. They should also know what kind of actions regulators can take against non-compliant businesses. These actions can include fines, audits, and even the unilateral revocation of the dispensary’s cannabis license.
Since marijuana remains illegal at the federal level, federally-backed banks can lose their licenses for providing financial services to cannabis dispensaries. In practical terms, this has turned every state’s cannabis industry into an all-cash environment. As a result, managing a cannabis dispensary is fundamentally different from managing any other kind of retail business. Dispensary owners have to implement strict security and surveillance protocols to protect this critical asset. Dispensary owners must implement solutions for reducing cash exposure both inside the dispensary and while traveling to pay taxes and municipal fees.
State regulators are interested in the movement of cannabis through their state’s distribution network. Similarly, they want to be able to identify cannabis that moves across state lines or ends up in the hands of minors. This requires having a great degree of visibility into cannabis dispensaries’ inventories. Dispensaries with solid inventory management solutions will have a far easier time attaining and demonstrating regulatory compliance than disorganized, ad-hoc affairs. The ability to quickly identify and report lost or stolen products is a business-critical feature for any cannabis inventory system.
One of the most important infrastructure decisions a cannabis dispensary can make is choosing what kind of point-of-sale (POS) solution to use. Without a POS, employees will need to manually enter every sale into the state’s compliance system, which will take time and draw attention away from higher impact, value-generating activities. For dispensaries in territories where delivery is legal, choosing a compliance-oriented POS solution is key. Otherwise, entering seed-to-sale tracking data for every transaction while keeping track of inventory becomes an unmanageable task.
Every state’s seed-to-sale tracking application works based on customer data. Dispensaries have to report sales transactions to regulators in order to demonstrate they are following the letter of the law concerning cannabis sales and logistics.
Instead of waiting to be surprised by a regulatory audit, and then scrambling to furnish the appropriate data, take time to conduct your own reconciliations and mock audits. These will help ensure that when the time comes, you and your staff will be ready to deliver.
State regulators are facing mounting pressure to close down illegal dispensaries that fail to observe regulatory law. These stories are going to become increasingly commonplace as the cannabis industry matures – make sure it doesn’t happen to you seeking the guidance of Marijuana Business Compliance Lawyers Montana.
Cannabis might be illegal at the federal level, but that doesn’t mean that associations cannot develop national standards for its sale and use. The development of national standards helps to ensure that cannabis cultivators, processors, and dispensaries all operate according to the same framework.
You can’t succeed in the world of cannabis compliance without a clear understanding of the illicit market it is situated against. Vaping offers an excellent example – vaping products were seen as perfectly harmless until people started reporting dangerous health complications, and now the entire industry has to present a united front towards safeguarding consumers’ health.
Getting Legal Advice
There is nothing trivial about compliance. State regulators have every right to revoke business licenses to organizations that don’t follow their rules.
The marijuana industry is even more fragmented because every state has its own unique set of rules to play by. Since there is no federal-level framework for legal cannabis sales, the specifics of each state’s regulatory framework can vary widely.
To get further legal assistance, Contact Marijuana Business Compliance Lawyers, Montana such as the advocates at Silverman law Office, PLLC.
Fill out the form below to get in touch with our legal team or call Bozeman office at (406) 582-8822 or our Helena office at (406) 449-4829 to talk to someone right away.
