Cannabis Law Group's Medical Marijuana Legal Blog
First week of ordinance closes while many Los Angeles medical marijuana dispensaries remain open
The LA Weekly reported that the majority of Los Angeles medical marijuana dispensaries remained open at the end of the first week of a new city ordinance that requires more than 400 of the shops to close.
As our Los Angeles marijuana dispensary attorneys have been reporting here on Marijuana Lawyer Blog, we have filed numerous lawsuits on behalf of these legal businesses. We strongly believe that the City of Los Angeles does not have the right to close businesses that are operating legally under California law. And the unfair nature of the ordinance — which allows more than 100 businesses to remain open while closing more than 400 others based on an arbitrary date, is also an issue we are arguing in court.
Our Los Angeles marijuana dispensary lawyers believe there is strength in numbers. The CANNABIS LAW GROUP offers reasonable legal fees and urges business owners to join in the fight.
The operators and landlords of 439 retailers have received letters from the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office warning that violation of the ordinance could result in a fine of up to $2,500 a day and six months in jail. Most of the city’s dispensaries are ineligible to operate because they did not receive approval before a November 2007 date established as part of the ordinance. Of the remaining 130, many are either not in business anymore or can’t comply with other rules of the ordinance, including a prohibition against operating a dispensary adjacent to a residential area.
The LA Weekly reports some of the dispensaries are now identifying themselves as members-only facilities while others contend they have been wrongly classified and are operating as therapy centers or related businesses.
As our Los Angeles marijuana defense lawyers reported last week, a growing number of businesses are reorganizing as delivery services.
Meanwhile, city officials continue to promise a crackdown. They contend members-only services are illegal and Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley said delivery of marijuana is illegal in the State of California, regardless of the city’s rules.
The CANNABIS LAW GROUP is a law firm dedicated to the rights of medical marijuana patients, collectives and growers and has built a reputation for high-powered, aggressive legal representation of the medical marijuana industry in Southern California. Call 949-375-4734 for a confidential consultation to discuss your rights.