Eleven cannabis lawsuits filed against CT to be consolidated

Eleven lawsuits against the state filed by hopeful but denied cannabis producers and retailers, have been consolidated, according to a court filing this week.

Only one suit, filed by Farmington-based Core Cult LLC, has not been included, as the plaintiff “has not responded to requests” concerning the motion.

All of the lawsuits, now to be heard as one, allege the state's Social Equity Council, which was charged with selecting Connecticut's initial slate of cannabis growers and retailers, denied applications based on incorrect information and arbitrary interpretations of the law.

According to the motion to consolidate, applicants were denied because the Social Equity Council determined a “failure to meet the required criteria for ‘ownership and control' of the business.”

Equity joint ventures, collaborations between financial backers and local individuals and entities that meet the state's social equity requirements, can be considered if it is at least 65 percent owned and controlled by that social equity applicant, according to the council's website.

All of the lawsuits allege that the council did not apply those rules correctly, arguing that the 65 percent standard is in violation of Connecticut law, that the standard was not disclosed in a timely way or that the council's decision on the owners was “factually erroneous, arbitrary, and/or an abuse of discretion,” the motion says.

Individuals are considered social equity applicants if they own and control 65 percent of the venture, had an average household income of less than 300 percent of the state median household income over the three years, was a resident of a disproportionately impacted area for not less than five of the 10 years before their application or was a resident of a disproportionately impacted area for not less than nine years before turning 18.