Cannabis in Mexico: Are We There Yet?
In this Chambers Expert Focus video, Julio Copo, of Mañón Quintana Abogados, explains the most significant legislative developments concerning the regulation of cannabis over the past decade in Mexico and analyses the present issues and potential resolutions.
The regulation of cannabis in Mexico has been the subject of much debate and several legislative developments in the past decade. In November 2015, a group of lawyers and activists brought a case to the Federal Supreme Court relating to the recreational use of cannabis. The Court ruled that a blanket prohibition was unconstitutional. This was followed by the first cannabis boom, in 2017, sparked by an amendment to the General Health Law that meant THC was no longer considered a Schedule 1 drug with no medical use and high potential for abuse. Several draft bills to regulate cannabis have been proposed and the number continues to grow.
"According to the Supreme Court, an absolute prohibition on the consumption of cannabis was not justified as it was deemed disproportionate in relation to its objective: to protect public health and public order."
However, a change of administration in 2018 held back moves towards the regulation of cannabis. The Federal Commission for Protection against Sanitary Risks (COFEPRIS) had filed draft regulations for the sanitary control of cannabis before the Federal Commission for Regulatory Improvement, but they never came into effect. In 2021, the Ministry of Health introduced regulations exclusively aimed at the production, research and medicinal use of cannabis and its pharmacological derivatives, but access to medicinal cannabis remains mostly limited to complex pharmaceutical industries. Meanwhile, COFEPRIS is intentionally stalling requests for permits from adults, leading users to go to court.
"At this time, the current administration only seems comfortable with cannabis as a regulated pharmaceutical product."
Mañón Quintana Abogados
