Helen Saulnier 
We’ve published lots about cannabis arbitrations just before, and why these proceedings might make much more sense for your scenario (see inbound links at the bottom of this put up!). But when you want speedy, injunctive relief, a prior settlement to arbitrate can perhaps be disastrous.
Arbitration is significantly slower than other litigation to get began — even though arbitration is generally regarded as very productive and obtaining an general shorter timeline. If you want to file a lawsuit in state or federal court, you draft a criticism and file. In arbitration though, you have to put together a desire, appoint an arbitrator or numerous arbitrators, and agree to policies. This can get many weeks.
The trouble
In some cases this isn’t an difficulty, but in some cases it is. Several cannabis litigation instances can involve requests for “injunctive relief” – this implies, a party is not (only) inquiring for cash damages, but also an buy from the court docket that restrains a party from performing sure functions.
A vintage illustration is if a hashish enterprise is suing one particular of its ex-personnel for spreading its trade strategies to the community. In that circumstance, you need quick relief – a thing like a non permanent restraining purchase, or a preliminary injunction, or a everlasting injunction. A court has inherent authority to order that ex-employee to cease disseminating trade secret facts. Not only that, but the court’s authority also is backed by federal government authority to implement that get or injunction (as well as ability to challenge sanctions or cite functions for contempt if they really don’t obey). Sadly, arbitrators really don’t have the inherent authority.
The solution
So, if you intend to include a binding arbitration clause in your cannabis company deal, consider which includes an exception or carve-out for injunctive reduction statements. The aim will be to enable the functions to seek out injunctive reduction by way of the courts but solve all other statements by means of arbitration.
It is essential to have a expert deal law firm draft this clause, due to the fact the distinct language issues. The language wants to make very clear that arbitration is not the exceptional remedy in these conditions. But, the language also wants to make apparent that including a request for injunctive relief does not hold the complete dispute out of arbitration.
For additional posts about hashish arbitration, remember to see:
