This CLE program explores the legal contradictions and policy shifts that have defined cannabis regulation in the United States for more than half a century. Although cannabis was once a commonly used agricultural and medicinal product, federal law dramatically changed course in 1970 when the Controlled Substances Act classified it as a Schedule I substance—effectively criminalizing most uses, restricting scientific research, and declaring it to have no accepted medical value.

Despite that federal posture, states began charting their own paths decades later. Starting with California’s medical marijuana framework in 1996 and followed by the legalization of adult-use cannabis in Colorado and Washington, state-level reforms have reshaped the legal and commercial landscape in ways that continue to challenge federal authority and regulatory consistency.

The program will also examine recent federal actions that signal a potential recalibration of national cannabis policy, including executive directives aimed at rescheduling cannabis and congressional legislation within the Big Beautiful Bill Act that materially alters how hemp and its derivatives are defined and regulated. Attorneys will gain insight into how these developments affect compliance, risk assessment, and future opportunities in an increasingly complex and evolving legal environment.