Wellness Connection of Maine filed a motion Oct. 29 to fight a lawsuit against the state that was brought by two small cannabis businesses over adult-use licenses awarded to out-of-state companies, according to a Bangor Daily News report.
Wellness Connection, which is controlled by Delaware-based investor High Street Capital Partners and operates four medical cannabis dispensaries in Maine, filed the motion on behalf of its adult-use business, NPG, to ask a judge to dismiss the lawsuit, which was brought by two medical cannabis caregivers who claim that the state cannot refuse to enforce a law restricting out-of-state business owners from participating in Maine’s adult-use market.
Maine eliminated a residency requirement in May that would have required every officer, director and manager of an adult-use cannabis business, as well as a majority of its ownership, to live and file taxes in Maine for at least four years. The rule was set to expire in June 2021, but the state repealed it early as part of an agreement with Wellness Connection, which filed a separate lawsuit in March to challenge the constitutionality of the requirement.
The new lawsuit now puts Wellness Connection on the same side as the state as a defendant, Bangor Daily News reported.
Maine’s first adult-use cannabis sales launched Oct. 9, and NPG currently holds one active manufacturing license, one active cultivation license, and five conditional approvals for another manufacturing facility and four dispensaries, according to Bangor Daily News.
