(2005): The Third District Court of Appeal issued a positive decision affirming the legality of collectives and cooperatives, and held that SB 420, otherwise referred to as the Medical Marijuana Program Act, provides for a defense to marijuana distribution for collectives and cooperatives. Drawing from the Compassionate Use Act's encouragement of the state and federal governments to implement a plan for the safe and affordable distribution of medical marijuana to those patients who need it, the court found that the Medical Marijuana Program Act and its legalization of collectives and cooperatives represented the state government's initial response to this directive. By expressly providing that medical marijuana patients are not subject to criminal penalties for cultivation and distribution of marijuana solely by virtue of doing so collectively, the Legislature has abrogated cases such as Trippet, Peron and Young, and established a new defense to those who form and operate collectives and cooperatives to dispense marijuana. Click here to view the ruling.

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