Lawsuit Forces DEA to Advance Cannabis Research —’Theoretically’

Sue Sisley, MD, forwards this release from the lawyers who filed suit on her behalf. Thirty-three  applicants

In June 2019, Scottsdale Research Institute filed an action in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals requesting a writ of mandamus to order the DEA to process its application to grow cannabis for its clinical research. Today—two days before the DEA’s court-ordered response explaining why it had not processed SRI’s three-year old application was due to in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit—DEA processed not only SRI’s application, but all 33 pending applications to grow cannabis for research purposes. Along with the notice, DEA also announced it would issue new guidelines to govern registration to grow cannabis for clinical research.

Dr. Sue Sisley, SRI’s principal, is cautiously optimistic and considers this to be a victory. As a result of this lawsuit, the five decade NIDA monopoly on growing cannabis appears to be moving toward an end, and the work of conducting robust clinical trials involving medical grade cannabis can finally begin.

Dr. Sisley said, “This is a historic victory for our DC Circuit Court case.

On the EVE of the DEADLINE TO EXPLAIN THEMSELVES to DC Circuit Court, the DEA has finally agreed to take the action everyone has been waiting for to facilitate research into medical uses of cannabis by ending 51+ year old NIDA monopoly at University of Mississippi.

Now we just need to keep the DEA’s feet to the fire and make sure they follow their own timelines they laid out in today’s public notice.

It could take years to get access to newly cultivated cannabis material for research—DEA/DOJ can slow-roll this for many years to come, leaving progress of medical cannabis research in limbo indefinitely. But at least that door is now theoretically kicked open.”

Scottsdale Research Institute are represented by Matthew Zorn and Shane Pennington of Yetter Coleman LLP, a trial and appellate boutique located in Houston, TX. The case is In re Scottsdale Research Institute, LLC, Case No. 19-1120 in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The challenge to the Ol’ Miss monopoly on cannabis deemed worthy of study by NIDA has been stalled for more than 12 years! Here is some relevant background from O’Shaughnessy’s on  the endless stall. Read ’em and weep.