Business & Strategy

A Sixth Circuit ruling in a cultivation dispute erased a $31.8 million lower-court verdict and exposed a broader problem for cannabis companies: Federal courts may refuse to enforce contracts tied to federally illegal activity. Attorneys disagree about how broad the ruling is, but they agree operators should rethink forum selection, arbitration, and enforcement strategy.

Congress gave hemp companies another month before most new federal restrictions take effect, but no additional certainty about what comes next. Rather than trying to predict Washington, executives can use the time to identify where the business is exposed, preserve flexibility across multiple outcomes, and establish clear triggers for changing course.

FTC regulators reached a $12 million settlement with Humboldt Merchant Services over allegations the payment processor opened more than 1,000 sham merchant accounts tied to fraudulent billing schemes.

Aurora rejected Curaleaf’s hostile takeover bid and disclosed that advisers are evaluating strategic alternatives, including potential competing offers, as the companies clash over valuation, upside, and voting control.

Cannabis regulations can change quickly and differently from one state to another, turning ordinary planning into an operational challenge. A multistate operator argues companies should stop treating every new rule as a crisis and instead build systems that detect changes early, preserve local flexibility, communicate updates consistently, and verify implementation.

AI is lowering the barrier to sophisticated cyberattacks, raising the stakes for cannabis businesses already vulnerable through POS systems, compliance platforms, and sensitive customer data.

Capital and technology may not determine which cannabis companies survive consolidation. The real dividing line is whether leaders can replace individual intuition with repeatable systems and make difficult organizational decisions before the market forces them. Drawing on his own countercyclical investment and painful restructuring, one executive asks whether today’s company is built to remain standing five years from now.

Local conservation can give cannabis companies a meaningful way to support their communities. Adolphus A. Busch V outlines four principles for credible partnerships and explains why transparency, measurable commitments, and long-term participation matter more than promotional claims.

Curaleaf’s hostile bid asks Aurora Cannabis shareholders to accept an offer advertised at US$4 per share. But the mostly stock consideration has no downside floor, its upside is capped, and U.S. investors would exchange a Nasdaq-listed security for shares traded domestically over the counter. The offer circular also appears to contain outdated information about the conversion of Boris Jordan’s multiple-voting shares.

Before consumers read a label or try what’s inside, they have already begun judging a product’s quality, credibility, and value. Packaging strategist Kary Radestock explains how materials, structure, texture, and opening mechanics create the first product experience and why successful cannabis packaging makes a promise the product can actually keep. The strongest designs don’t merely attract attention on the shelf; they build confidence in the consumer’s hands.