Cannabis Law

Are you confused about how the legalization of Cannabis will impact you, your employees and your business? Are you confused about the treatment of medicinal Cannabis and recreational Cannabis? Are you tasked with revising your workplace policy to include Cannabis? Are you interested in opening up a Cannabis retail location? Are you having issues with your tenant or landlord over Cannabis? Are you curious about impaired driving re: Cannabis? We have all the information you need about:

Drafting workplace policies to include Cannabis (medicinal vs. recreational);
Licencing requirements for opening a retail Cannabis location;
Landlord / tenant disputes over growing and smoking Cannabis in homes;
Criminal code amendments as it relates to impaired driving and possession of Cannabis;

Here are answers to some of our most frequently asked questions about Cannabis Law:

QUESTION: DO I HAVE TO ACCOMMODATE MY EMPLOYEES WITH A MEDICAL CANNABIS PRESCRIPTION?

ANSWER:

Mostly yes. Unless the employee is working in a safety sensitive position, employers must accommodate prescription cannabis use, otherwise the employee could sue the employee for discrimination under the Human Rights Act. However, how an employer accommodates such usage involves, among other things, setting out clear corporate policies and maintains communication with the employee.

QUESTION: HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO GET A RETAIL LICENCE TO SELL CANNABIS?

ANSWER:

It takes about 4-5 months after your initial application to the AGLC to obtain a licence. However, in order to obtain a licence, you must show the AGLC that you own or have an accepted offer to lease an appropriate location that does not violate any municipal bylaws (such as proximity to liquor stores, schools, community centers), all shareholders of the retail location must undergo criminal record checks, and the retail location must meet security requirements.

QUESTION: WHAT ARE THE NEW POSSESSION OF CANNABIS OFFENCES?

ANSWER:

The new possession offences will include possession more than 30g of Cannabis in a public place, possessing illegal cannabis, possession of a flowering cannabis plant in a public place, possessing more than 4 cannabis plants, and a young person (under 18) possessing more than 5g of cannabis. The penalties for adults will be anywhere from 6 months to 14 years in prison. There are also new rules about distributing cannabis.