Articles Posted in Cannabis Licensing

How a Los Angeles cannabis license ownership change works under LAMC 104.03, the 51% Social Equity share rules, and what triggers a DCR Notice to Correct.

Short answer: In the City of Los Angeles, you cannot buy or sell a licensed cannabis business by signing a purchase agreement. Every change to a licensed entity’s ownership structure requires prior written approval from the Los Angeles Department of Cannabis Regulation (DCR). The core filing is LIC-4004-MOD (Application Modification Request – Ownership Structure), submitted…

A California cannabis cultivation license is issued by the Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) under Business and Professions Code Division 10 and Title 4, Division 19 of the California Code of Regulations. As of 2026, only annual licenses are available — provisional cultivation licenses ended on January 1, 2026, and the statute that authorized them…

California’s Department of Cannabis Control has proposed one of the most consequential changes to cultivation compliance in years: group plant tagging, allowing licensees to tag groups of plants under a single unique identifier rather than affixing a tag to every plant. The proposal, DCC-2026-03-R, closed its public comment period on July 27, 2026, and now…

On July 1, 2026, California’s new cannabis cultivation and sanitation rules from the Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) took effect, trimming several long-standing reporting obligations for cultivators while introducing the state’s first dedicated minimum sanitation standards for licensees who handle exposed cannabis. These rules are now in force, and licensees should confirm their practices comply.…

California’s Department of Cannabis Control has opened an expedited path for dual-designated retailers to split a single A and M license, which carries both the Adult-Use and Medicinal designation, into two separate licenses. The move is the state’s first regulatory response to federal rescheduling, and it carries real structural consequences for operators. What the A…

Adding, removing, or changing an owner or financial interest holder triggers a 14-day reporting duty to the DCC under 4 CCR section 15023. Miss it – or leave someone off – and you invite an enforcement problem.

Miss your California cannabis license renewal and you must stop operating – and a late renewal costs 50% extra. Blow the 30-day grace period and you lose the license entirely. Here are the deadlines in 4 CCR section 15020.

You cannot simply sell a California cannabis license. Whether you can keep operating during an ownership change depends on one distinction in 4 CCR section 15023 – here is what it is and how to get it right.

One application error sends your cannabis license to the back of the queue — a 3-6 month delay that can cost $180,000 in burn. Where DCC and LA DCR applications actually die, and how experienced counsel prevents it. Flat-fee application prep. Baghoomian Law: (818) 514-9272.