DWT partner Shelley Spandorf’s article "Franchising in the Cannabis Industry" was recently featured on the cover of Marijuana Venture. Shelley explains the benefits that an owner of a branded cannabis chain could reap by offering independent cannabis dispensaries the opportunity to convert their operations to a common brand name and retail identity under a licensing or brand affiliation arrangement.
Shelley also points out the legal risks that brand owners face if the licenses they award are, in fact, franchises. Significant liability can follow the unlawful sale of franchises even if the brand owner truly did not know about the law and had no intention to violate it. The law shows no mercy on the proverbial "accidental" franchisor.
For more on accidental franchises, when a brand license becomes a franchise, the three components of what constitute a franchise, and why they are important to the cannabis industry, read the full article on Marijuana Venture.
Shelley Spandorf is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Davis Wright Tremaine. She is a certified specialist in franchise and distribution law by the Office of Legal Specialization of the State Bar of California, the first woman to chair the American Bar Association’s Forum on Franchising, the nation’s preeminent association of franchise attorneys, and has twice chaired the Franchise Law Committee of the California Lawyers Association.