Out-of-State Backers Can Challenge Rhode Island Marijuana Rules

A federal district court erred when it ruled that California and Florida growers couldn’t challenge Rhode Island’s scheme for selling recreational marijuana, the First Circuit said Tuesday.

The Rhode Island scheme limits the number of retail establishments that can sell cannabis in the state and requires all applicants for a license to be residents or a business entity with a principal place of business in the state. It also has a category for social equity applicants that earmarks several licenses for people with expungeable marijuana offenses.

In two separate cases, Justyna Jensen and John Kenney challenged the Rhode Island Cannabis ...