The Center for Legal Studies & Business Ethics (CLSBE) plans to host a 2020 academic symposium: Legal, Ethical, and Compliance Issues in Emerging Markets: Cannabis in the States.
The CLSBE envisions a world where business may achieve competitive advantage through legal, ethical, and regulatory compliance. Though compliance is generally regarded as an external cost imposed on business, the CLSBE is interested in exploring the strategic and competitive possibilities for business because they are operating in a rapidly changing legal and regulatory environment.
This symposium will be devoted to exploring the complex legal, ethical, and compliance issues presented by the U.S. cannabis industry. Thirty-three states (including Oklahoma) and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis in some form, yet marijuana (cannabis) remains a Schedule I drug illegal under the federal Controlled Substances Act. States, municipalities, producers, consumers, and other stakeholders in this industry must deal with the extreme uncertainty created by the unique legal complexities of this multibillion-dollar emerging industry sector. How businesses may best legally and ethically position themselves in this space is the focus of this symposium.