"Marijuana, Federal Power, and the States"

The title of this post is the title of the exciting symposium taking place all day tomorrow, Friday, September 12, at Case Western Reserve University School of Law.  The website for the event with the full schedule of speakers is available at this link (including a webcast link), and the website sets up the event with this overview:

In 2013 voters in Colorado and Washington legalized the possession of marijuana under state law. Several other states allow the possession and use of marijuana for medicinal purposes, and others appear ready to follow suit. Yet marijuana remains illegal under federal law.  The federal governmental has not sought to preempt these decisions, and has outlined a new enforcement policy that largely defers to state law enforcement.

Nonetheless, the conflict between federal and state laws creates legal difficulty for business owners, financial institutions, and local law enforcement.  Is this dual regime sustainable? Should the federal government defer to state electorates on marijuana policies? Is drug policy best made at the federal or state level?  How should principles of federalism inform the federal government’s response to state initiatives on marijuana? Prominent academics will consider these and related questions raised by state-level marijuana policy reforms.

Professor Jonathan Adler, along with Case's Center for Business Law and Regulation, has brought together for this event nearly all of the leading legal and policy scholars doing research and work on these topics.  I am heading up to Cleveland right after I finish this post and I am very excited to be a part of this great event.