Cannabis Retailers Sue British Columbia Government – Cannabis News, Lifestyle

An anonymous group of cannabis traffickers is suing the British Columbia government. The lawsuit stems from what they say is a failure to enforce cannabis regulations. The plaintiffs are 14 BC and Alberta retailers. They are seeking $40 million in damages. The lawsuit states, “As a result of the defendants’ failure to enforce the Cannabis Control and Licensing Act, the plaintiffs have each suffered and continue to suffer harm in the form of lost income and losses.”

The lawsuit comes as a shock to many, as BC’s legal cannabis sales are up 25% in February and over 118% compared to February 2020. Yet enforcement on tribal lands is lacking, and that is the crux of the lawsuit. 14 Legal Retailers Are Angry At Consumers Heading To Indian Reserves For Cheaper Cannabis

What happened?

This, of course, is entirely the fault of the BC government. They have admitted they have been reluctant to enforce cannabis laws on First Nations land.

British Columbia Minister of Public Safety Mike Farnworth said: “Enforcement action on First Nations lands without the support of community leadership is likely to lead to litigation and strain relationships with First Nations communities. Furthermore, this approach is unlikely to achieve regulatory compliance and indigenous participation in the legal cannabis industry.”

Many First Nations communities justify their management of cannabis production and sales without Crown authority. But whether justified or not, this question opens the door to legal battles between the two powers. As such, the Community Safety Unit (CSU, the Cannabis Enforcement Bureau) in BC does not prioritize enforcement on Indigenous lands.

Are Cannabis Retailers Legal to Sue the BC Government?

Retailers have expressed frustration with unlicensed stores in the past. They argue that it is impossible to compete with unregulated cannabis businesses. And you can see their point: Legal cannabis dealers must comply with numerous regulations, most of which are unnecessary. And they have to pay exorbitant taxes. With over 100 unlicensed stores estimated to be in operation, this problem is more prevalent in inland BC.

To add insult to injury, the BC government is actively working with First Nations under Section 119 of BC’s Cannabis Control and Licensing Act. In agreements like the one with Williams Lake First Nations, the cannabis company can sell products directly from its facility. Known as “Farm Gate” sales, this is currently only available to First Nations. The BC government funded the First Nations cannabis farm with a $500,000 grant.

However, Farnworth argues that “the Community Safety Unit is working to shut down the illegal market and make an impact. More than 170 shops without a license were closed because of CSU actions. These include enforcement actions against over 75 unlicensed cannabis retailers, removing over $25 million worth of cannabis products from the illicit market and imposing 42 administrative fines.”

BC Government for lunch

Farnworth does not mention that these 170 unlicensed shops were mostly located on the lower mainland. In many cases, the stores have served their communities for years. They were the preferred retailer over the competition.

For example, on the eve of legalization, an unnamed BC city had three unlicensed businesses. Two were known, trusted, and owned by respected community members. The third was the “patchy” one, which was brand new and had – alleged but never proven – links to organized crime. Can you guess which one was approved by the BC government? And which two were pushed out of business by the CSU?

Regarding the lawsuit, David Milosevic of Milosevic Fisk LLP, the plaintiff’s legal team, said: “In our view, the asserted claim that proper enforcement by the British Columbia government will benefit all communities of British Columbia is both on reserve as well as off reserve.”

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