Client Update: Nova Scotia gives first look at cannabis regulation
Rick Dunlop, Kevin Landry and Justin Song
Following October’s public consultation, which resulted in over 31,000 responses, Nova Scotia has revealed the first hints of its cannabis regulatory regime. While Nova Scotia’s proposed provincial legislation under the Cannabis Act has not yet been released, today’s press release provides insight as to what can be expected moving forward.
What will the Nova Scotia regulatory regime look like?
Home cultivation
Unlike Quebec and Manitoba, Nova Scotia intends to permit adults to grow up to four plants per household, in line with the Cannabis Act.
Age
The legal age to purchase recreational cannabis in Nova Scotia will be 19 – which is in line with the province’s liquor laws. The proposed legal age of 19 is consistent with Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick, Ontario, British Columbia, and Yukon.
Alberta and Quebec have set the legal age to 18, mirroring their legal age to purchase alcohol. Manitoba has proposed a legal age of 19 and is the only province, so far, that has not mirrored its provincial drinking age (18 in Manitoba).
The remaining provinces – Saskatchewan, PEI, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut – are currently in the process of holding public consultations.
Distribution
The distribution and sale of cannabis will be through the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC) both online and in existing NSLC stores.
The government expects to have cannabis available on July 1, 2018 in a number of stores. The NSLC was chosen because of the survey responses which indicated that:
the NSLC allows Nova Scotia to best protect children and youth, and that it made sense to use a crown corporation that already has retail experience and infrastructure.
Personal possession
In keeping with the federal legislation and the approach taken by other provinces, Nova Scotia will allow adults of legal age to possess up to 30 grams of cannabis. Unlike New Brunswick which requires that cannabis be stored in a locked container or room, Nova Scotia does not intend to require cannabis to be locked up within private homes.
Purchase or possession of cannabis for those under the legal age of 19 will be prohibited. Nova Scotia will implement provincial penalties for youth possession of up to 5 grams. Youth found with less than 5 grams will be subject to seizure of the cannabis, notification of parents or guardians, and fines similar to those for underage possession of alcohol or tobacco.
The federal legislation treats possession of more than 5 grams by those under 18 as a criminal offence. These offences will be prosecuted under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, as is the current process for youth drug offences.
Archive
Chad Sullivan and Kathleen Nash Overview The issue of hateful and harassing social media communication has garnered much attention in both the media and, more recently, in the courtroom. In Caplan v Atas,¹ Justice Corbett…
Read MoreDaniel MacKenzie and James Galsworthy On January 15, 2021, the United Kingdom’s Supreme Court (“Court”) issued a decision which is likely to be viewed as good news for policy holders who have endured business interruption…
Read MoreGrant Machum, ICD.D and Mark Tector 2020 was a challenging year for many people and businesses. And while we are all happy to have 2020 in the rearview mirror, we anticipate that there will continue to…
Read MoreKevin Landry and William Wojcik On December 11, 2020, the federal government announced Canada’s strengthened climate plan in a document titled A Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy (“Plan”). The Plan proposes to increase the carbon…
Read MoreKenneth McCullogh, QC and Conor O’Neil, P.Eng. On December 18, 2020, the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick passed the Construction Remedies Act. The new legislation will not take effect until a date to be named…
Read MoreMark Tector In a recent decision, an adjudicator upheld the dismissal of an employee/complainant who made inappropriate and offensive remarks on a call with a customer (Crawford v Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce). The complainant…
Read More2020 brought us all challenges that have been unprecedented in our time. The COVID-19 global pandemic has impacted us in ways that were unimaginable. As Atlantic Canada navigated the challenges of changing worlds, and workplaces,…
Read MoreKathleen Leighton On December 31, 2020, the Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport, announced new pre-boarding COVID-19 testing requirements that would be coming into effect in short order. In particular, as of January 6, 2021…
Read MoreDaniela Bassan, QC, has published an article in volume 36 of the Canadian Intellectual Property Review. She comments on an Italian case granting copyright protection for a retail store in the cosmetics industry, and considers…
Read MoreRob Aske In late December 2020, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) issued a key decision elaborating on the duty of honesty in relation to termination of a commercial contract. This duty was primarily established…
Read More