By Damian Nassiri, Esq.
The so-called medical marijuana “grower’s license” being advertised by doctors is a farce. If you are thinking about spending your money on a grower’s license with the intent of using that license to grow medical marijuana to sell to a medical marijuana collective, you should know that it is not legal to do this.
The grower’s license being hawked by many doctors has several problems with it. First, you must understand that a grower’s license is nothing issued by the State of California or by any city or county. It is just another form of a medical marijuana recommendation issued by doctors. Second—and probably most important—the grower’s license will only allow you to grow medicine for yourself. If does not authorize you to grow 99 plants for a collective. Nor does it authorize you to sell your extra medicine to other patients or other medical marijuana collectives.
The so-called grower’s license is just a scam by doctors who want to take your money and give you the false sense of security that your large-scale grow is legitimate. The doctor’s 99-plant recommendation to you means that the doctor has evaluated your medical condition and determined that you suffer from a severe medical condition, a medical condition so severe that six mature plants will not suffice for your medical needs. It does not authorize you to grow for others.
If your 99-plant grow is discovered by a cop, the officer will likely look to see if you have paperwork to evidence that your grow is legal under California state law. If you are growing 99 plants and have only a 99-plant grower’s license, the cop could arrest you and a local district attorney could try to build a case against you with the theory being that you are not so “seriously ill” that you need 99 plants. In that case, you would then need the doctor to show up in court and testify that your medical condition was so serious that 6 plants were not enough and that you needed 99 plants. If the doctor is out golfing that day, he may not show up to testify, and you are left trying to convince the jury that you, personally, needed pounds and pounds of medicine. This argument may not work, especially if the doctor is not willing, or unavailable to stand behind his grower’s license and show up to testify.
So, what’s the most legitimate way to grow? The first thing you need to know is that California law says that collectives must get their medicine from their members. Secondly, you can’t sell medicine from one collective to another. Accordingly, the available law tells us that the proper way to grow for others is to first join a collective. Don’t rely on a grower’s license issued by a doctor who isn’t even a member of the collective for which you would like to grow. Second, after you join the collective and establish a relationship with the other members, then obtain authorization from that collective to grow for other members of their collective. The best way to do this is through the use of contracts.
Remember, the law says that qualified patients can get medicine from other members of the collective who grow for them. So, you don’t need the doctor and you don’t need to rely on a phony grower’s license either.
Attorney Damian Nassiri is the founding partner of the Cannabis Law Group, a law firm dedicated to the rights of patients, collectives and growers. His firm offers consultations and nonprofit incorporations to those who are interested in starting their own medical marijuana collective. You can reach Cannabis Law Group at (714) 937-2050 or visit the law firm’s website at www.cannabislawgroup.com.
