What Does Your Cannabis Business Need; General Council or Compliance Assistance?

At Cannabis Regulatory Authority (CRA) we know that with all the new regulation put in place it is a necessity for both. A lawyer is the ideal solution when you have actual issues which require representation, but with a proper regulatory system in place, issues shouldn’t turn into legal matters. A lawyer’s traditional role is to provide legal advice and advocate gaining the best resolution for their client, mostly after the fact. CRA is the designer of a compliance strategy; we structure and develop a simplified quality system to accommodate current regulations. It is up to us to comprehend complicated laws and regulations and process them into a flourishing and workable set of operations for your company to adhere to. These processes must fit according to each company’s unique set of circumstances; all companies are not created equal.

It is our job to educate your CEO, Board, Compliance Officer, and staff on the developed Standard Operating Procedures that we customize and develop for your organization. AT CRA, we also monitor, detect, audit and report any potential findings that regulatory agencies may find and proactively resolve the issues found. The key here is being “proactive”, as most regulatory agencies and legal authorities are happy to work with an organization that is transparent and being proactive in recognizing issues, big or small. Quite possibly the most important role of the CRA is to minister a culture of positive accountability for all positions within the company along with fostering safety for all levels of the company’s personnel and to report any offenses or situations that may require attention before they become an issue for any outside authorities.

The Office of Inspector General has taken the following position: legal counsel should not exercise a dual role.

Now, you are probably asking yourself, why use the OIG’s recommendation as an example? Keep in mind, just as there are lawyers for all types of entities, the same goes for compliance! Here are just some type of organizations and entities that utilize both legal and regulatory: Banks, Corporations, Health Providers and Durable Medical Equipment providers; which brings me to why CRA is the most appropriate organization to handle your Cannabis compliance needs. The owners of CRA have their background in Federal Drug Administration (FDA), Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), California Department of Public Health (CDPH) – who regulates the Manufactures of cannabis, and California Medical Board. They have worked with these heavily regulated administrations for many years and have been through numerous audits with each as well as local agencies. They have a precognition and exceptional knowledge on how to prepare and pass audits by being proactive versus reactive. This will help any organization assisted by CRA to stay within the framework of proper regulation so that there will never be a need to call your attorney? Why wait until it’s too late?

This last point brings us to our conclusion, and to summarize the topic: Compliance is proactive, legal is reactive. BOTH components are vital, yet only one can keep you from getting in hot water!