President Trump has issued an Executive Order directing the reclassification of marijuana from a Schedule I controlled substance to a schedule III controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act. The EO does not legalize cannabis federally. Instead, it acknowledges that cannabis has some potential health benefits and should be treated like a medicine along the lines of Tylenol with codeine and thereby removes the harsh criminal penalties under Schedule I. Because of the rescheduling, cannabis will be subject to the Food, Drugs and Cosmetics Act and will need to received ...
Published in the National Law Review, December 15, 2025
Introduction: Marijuana and Hemp Distinguished
The legal landscape of cannabis in the United States has undergone dramatic changes over the past three decades. Central to these developments is the distinction between marijuana and hemp—both varieties of Cannabis sativa L.
The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 (CSA) classified all cannabis as Schedule I 'marijuana,' a substance deemed to have high abuse potential and no accepted medical use. Despite this, state-level reforms began in 1996 with California’s ...
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