A Montgomery Circuit Judge has appointed a retired circuit judge to be a mediator in the litigation-ridden process by which companies are licensed to cultivate, sell, handle, issue and everything in between for medical cannabis in Alabama. The prolonged conflict stems from companies contesting the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission’s process of awarding licenses to grow and sell medical marijuana, which was approved in 2021 but remains unavailable to patients today.
Judge James Anderson announced his selection of Eugene Reese for the role on Tuesday. Anderson is of the opinion that mediation “is appropriate in this case and could result in the speedy and just resolution of the dispute.”
Obstacles to launching the program have so far been numerous.
In December of 2023, a court entered an order prohibiting the Commission from moving forward with the licensure process in any way after two companies, Alabama Always and Insa, filed almost identical motions on the same day for expedited discovery on AAPA and AOMA issues.
RELATED: Appeals court clears path for lawsuit against Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission
A little over a month later a trial court order then allowed for the commissioners to be deposed based on accusations that they had held secret meetings outside of public view. In June, the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals dismissed two petitions for writs of mandamus filed by the AMCC. The commission was seeking to vacate two circuit court orders from Jan. 3 and Jan. 30, 2024, allowing Alabama Always, LLC, and other denied businesses to remain in the pool of possible licensees.
The court then ruled against the Commission and allowed Alabama Always to proceed with depositions and the review of documents related to the commission’s internal operations.
Alabama Always and Insa were not the only unsuccessful applicants suing the Commission. The AMCC was also being sued by Southeast Cannabis Company; TheraTrue Alabama; Yellowhammer Medical Dispensaries, LLC; Jemmstone Alabama, LLC; 3 Notch Roots LLC; Pure by Sirmon Farms; and several other unsuccessful applicants.
Austen Shipley is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @ShipleyAusten
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