Cannabis Patents

4/21/2025

Cutting Through the Haze of the IP Landscape

In this month’s episode, we’re getting high on innovation with a deep dive into cannabis patents. As more and more states relax restrictions on both medical and recreational uses of marijuana and hemp, the U.S. cannabis industry is projected to reach $50 billion in sales this year and over $74.6 billion by 2032! This rapid growth is happening despite immense challenges brought on by a complex and conflicting web of legal disparities between federal and state laws. These legal challenges include limited access to financial institutions and the inability to transport products across state lines, but what about patents? THC - the primary psychoactive compound in cannabis – was deemed a Schedule One drug under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. This is the most restrictive category for drugs in the eyes of the federal government. And unlike most other property rights, patents fall squarely within federal jurisdiction. So what does this mean for inventors in the space hoping to protect their cannabis-related innovations?

Guest Host: James Gourley

For the answer, we turned to the expert in the space. There have only been five or so cannabis patent infringement cases ever filed in the United States, and our guest host today has worked on two of them. James Gourley is a partner at Carstens, Allen & Gourley, LLP, and a registered patent attorney with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. James served on the Dallas Bar Association's Intellectual Property Section Board before moving to Denver. He is a member of the State Bar of Texas and Colorado and is admitted to practice in the U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western Districts of Texas, the District of Colorado, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court. James has been a pioneer in the budding space of cannabis IP law and brings incredible depth of expertise, based on first-hand experience, to our conversation.

Episode Overview

To help make sense of all of this and so that your IP rights don’t just go up in smoke, James and the panel discuss:

Cannabis at the molecular level, specifically THC and CBD, and how the subtle differences underscore the complexity of cannabis legality.
The present legal framework around cannabis and the challenges that come via a patchwork of conflicting state and federal laws.
Cannabis IP issues surrounding obtaining and asserting both patents and trademarks, including insights from the cases James has personally litigated.
And patent prosecution strategies to help ensure your rights are enforceable in a federal court.

James leads this blunt conversation with our always exceptional group of IP experts, including:

Dr. Ashley Sloat, President and Director of Patent Strategy at Aurora
Dr. David Jackrel, President of Jackrel Consulting
Kristen Hansen, Patent Strategy Specialist at Aurora
Marie Smyth, Patent Agent at Brake Hughes Bellermann LLP

Mossoff Minute: Six New Anti-patent Bills

In this month's Mossoff Minute, Professor Adam Mossoff discusses six new anti-patent bills that the Senate Judiciary Committee recently advanced, despite being backed by bogus data. We’re also publishing excerpts as short-form videos on Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, and TikTok.

How to Listen

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Resources.

To further explore the topics discussed, see the following past episodes and resources:

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