Mallory King - April 20, 2020 - Internet Law, Marijuana Law
With medical and recreational marijuana becoming increasingly legal throughout the country, many businesses are taking advantage of this lucrative endeavor by either growing, processing, and/or selling legal marijuana. Further, some businesses may wish to provide broader informational resources related to marijuana or community forums for like-minded consumers to correspond and share notes.
In today’s world, having an online presence is essential for having a successful business. So what happens when the topic – lest the sale – of marijuana goes online? To ensure that you, as a business, are maintaining a legal marjiuana website, your Terms of Use should be drafted accordingly. While no website – including those related to cannabis – is completely without risk, below are the top three terms to include in your marijuana website’s Terms of Use:
One extremely obvious aspect about marijuana is that it currently remains illegal under the federal Controlled Substance Act (“CSA”). Acknowledging this is of utmost importance in your Terms of Use, as well as noting that the transportation of marjiuana across state lines is illegal. If your website is facilitating the sale of a marijuana related product in any way (for instance, between users from ad listings or as dispensary allowing online orders for pick-up/delivery), you want to disclaim any liability that might arise from the illegal sale and/or shipment of marijuana.
To this end, it is also wise to specifically list out what states do allow medical and/or recreational use and sale of marijuana. You should not only be operating from one of these states, but also require that your users be from these states as well.
Because marijuana is only legal on a state-level, your Terms of Use should include provisions that your users warrant and represent they are (1) Living in a state that has legalized medical and/or recreational marijuana and (2) Legally old enough to purchase medical and/or recreational marijuana. If your website has an account feature or allows for purchases to be made, you should necessitate that users upload a copy of their driver’s license. To reduce your risk of liability stemming from underage or unqualified users, your Terms of Use should include several provisions explicitly limiting your liability related to the same.
You will want to disclaim in your Terms of Use that your website is not providing medical advice and that users should not take information available on the website as such. This is especially applicable if you are providing informational resources or a community forum related to the topic of marijuana. Any website should include a medical advice disclaimer to prevent liability resulting from a user who might take information literally over that of a qualified health provider.
Every website is different, even those that provide information and resources related to marijuana. While Traverse Legal recommends certain warranties, representations, liability limitations, and disclaimers in every website Terms of Use, marijuana websites can present unique circumstances that warrant extra attention. If you are concerned about the legality of your website – marijuana related or not – we are here to help.
