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ARTICLE · 09 MARCH 2026

Cannabis Patents: How Evolving Marijuana Laws Affect Plant, Seed, And Processing Innovation

Dickinson Wright PLLC
Dickinson Wright PLLC
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The uneven evolution of federal and state cannabis laws continues to frustrate cannabis business operations, including, but not limited to, how intellectual property is created, valued, and deployed.

United StatesIntellectual Property
J. Morgan Dixon
J. Morgan Dixon
Jonathan R. Wachs
Jonathan R. Wachs
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Abstract

The uneven evolution of federal and state cannabis laws continues to frustrate cannabis business operations, including, but not limited to, how intellectual property is created, valued, and deployed. While trademark rights remain closely tethered to lawful commercial use in interstate commerce,1 patent rights operate under a different legal framework—one that has historically permitted protection in favor of disclosure of inventions, notwithstanding the criminal violations that may accrue when practicing the patent.2 As a result, patents covering cannabis plants, genetics, cultivation methods, and downstream processing technologies have existed for years, even as commercialization remained constrained.

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