Dovel & Luner, a boutique litigation law firm filed a class action suit against Lowell Farms Inc. LOWLF and Cypress Manufacturing Company on behalf of California consumers who purchased cannabis products with inaccurate THC content labels. The lawsuit alleges that defendants who make, sell, distribute and market “Lowell Herb Co.” brand cannabis products overcharged consumers by illegally selling products whose THC content was represented as substantially higher than it actually was.
The complaint, filed in the Superior Court of the State of California County of Los Angeles, alleges that Lowell Farms and Cypress Manufacturing Company violated the consumer protection laws of California, including California’s Unfair Competition Law and False Advertising Law, among other violations.
The lawsuit states, “Because THC is responsible for most of the psychological effects that cannabis produces, many consumers prefer and seek out cannabis with a higher THC content. The THC content of cannabis products largely drives the demand for those products. Because of this, cannabis products with higher THC content sell for substantially higher prices.”
California regulations require that the THC content listed on the label be within a particular margin of error of what is actually in the product. Specifically, the THC “claimed to be present on a label,” must be within “plus or minus 10.0%” of the true THC content of the product.
The complaint alleges, “Independent laboratory testing of Lowell Products reveals that the actual THC content of the products is materially less (well below the allowable 10% margin of error) than what was declared on the label. In particular, the Lowell Smokes – The Relaxing Indica Hash Infused 3-Pack Preroll was listed as having 38% THC on the label. Independent lab testing showed, however, that the actual content of the product was substantially lower, between 18-21% THC. Thus, the THC content was overstated by 81-111% —substantially more than the 10% margin of error allowed under the California regulations.”
Cannabis Companies And Litigations
This lawsuit is just one in what seems to be the beginning of a chain of lawsuits that Dovel & Luner are initiating regarding false advertising in the cannabis market. The firm recently filed a lawsuit against Ironworks Collective Inc. and Stiiizy LLC and another lawsuit against VO Leasing Corp. and its Presidential brand.
Cannabis companies were recently struggling with lawsuits even without getting in the crosshairs of Dovel & Luner:
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Trulieve TCNNF was recently sued in a federal class action suit for firing workers without cause and without giving advance notice.
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Vertical Bliss was ordered to pay $128 million to the state of California for the illegal production of millions of cannabis gummies, following a Los Angeles judge’s ruling.
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Curaleaf CURLF was ordered to pay $100,000 to settle one of several class-action lawsuits that resulted from mixing up two very different products - one that contained CBD and the other THC.
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C3 International Cannabis Co. was sued By US Securities And Exchange Commission
Price Action
Lowell Farms shares were trading 16.25% lower at $0.1 per share at the time of this writing Monday morning.
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