PERIDOT TREE WA, INC. V. WASHINGTON STATE LIQUOR AND CANNABIS CONTROL BOARD, ET AL.
Split Score
What is a Split Score?
This score (0-100) indicates how likely this case is to be reviewed by the Supreme Court based on:
Case Summary
Disposition
Affirmed
The Ninth Circuit affirmed two district court dismissals of challenges to Washington State and City of Sacramento cannabis-licensing schemes that favor in-state residents. The court held the dormant Commerce Clause does not extend to interstate trade in marijuana because Congress has made that market illegal under the Controlled Substances Act.
Circuit Split Identified
Legal Issue
Whether the dormant Commerce Clause applies to state residency or preference requirements in the licensing of marijuana businesses when marijuana remains illegal under federal law.
Circuit Positions
Dormant Commerce Clause applies to cannabis markets; state residency preferences for dispensary licenses are unconstitutional.
Dormant Commerce Clause does not apply to cannabis markets because Congress has banned the interstate market in marijuana under the CSA.
Conflict Summary
The First and Second Circuits have held that residency-based cannabis-licensing schemes violate the dormant Commerce Clause notwithstanding federal prohibition of marijuana. The Ninth Circuit here disagrees, concluding that the dormant Commerce Clause should not be extended to protect an interstate market Congress has declared illegal.