Why Operators Hire Kocot Law as Their Federal Cannabis Attorney

Kocot Law represents state-licensed medical marijuana operators navigating the federal regulatory framework that emerged from the April 2026 rescheduling of marijuana to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act. We prepare DEA registration applications under 21 C.F.R. § 1301.13(k), advise on post-registration federal compliance, and issue Federal Status Change advisories that translate the new federal layer into actionable guidance for cultivators, manufacturers, distributors, dispensaries, researchers, importers, and exporters operating under qualifying state medical-marijuana licenses.

Federal cannabis law is a new area for most operators, and the procedural and substantive demands are unfamiliar. We help clients get registered cleanly the first time, defend their registrations throughout their lifecycle, and integrate federal compliance with the state regulatory obligations operators already manage.

On April 22, 2026, the Attorney General’s order represented a historic change to federal cannabis classification. The order applies to two categories:

1. FDA-approved marijuana products, which become Schedule III drugs subject to standard pharmaceutical controls
2. Marijuana covered by qualifying state medical-marijuana licenses under the new expedited pathway at 21 C.F.R. § 1301.13(k)

Adult-use (recreational) marijuana remains Schedule I. The rescheduling is not legalization. It is a reclassification that creates a federal pathway for state-medical operators to obtain DEA registration and operate within federal law for the first time since 1970 with the federal compliance obligations that come with controlled-substance registration.

We prepare complete DEA registration application packages for state-licensed medical marijuana operators across all license types. Application work includes:

• DEA Form 224 or Form 225 preparation, depending on operator type
• § 823(e)–(g) public-interest analysis
• Background information for owners, officers, and other persons with substantial control
• Premises documentation including diversion-prevention measures
• For manufacturers: cultivation area calculations, storage protocols, and Single Convention nominal-price documentation under § 1301.13(k)(6)

Federal registration creates ongoing obligations. We advise registrants on:

• 21 C.F.R. Part 1304 recordkeeping, including initial inventory, biennial inventory, receipts, distributions, and disposal records
• Security requirements under 21 C.F.R. Part 1301 Subpart F, including physical security controls, alarm systems, and limited access
• DEA quota system for manufacturers (procurement and manufacturing quotas under Part 1303)
• Periodic and event-driven reporting, including theft and significant loss reports under § 1301.76(b)
• Suspicious order monitoring for distributors and manufacturers
• Practitioner registration considerations for medical professionals associated with the operator
• Federal-state compliance integration, ensuring DEA obligations don’t conflict with METRC, Biotrack, or other state track-and-trace and reporting regimes

For existing state-licensed medical operators, the rescheduling fundamentally changes their federal posture. Each operator’s Federal Status Change advisory addresses:

• Whether the operator’s current activities qualify under § 1301.13(k)
• The 60-day window analysis and recommended timing
• License type, structure, and ownership disclosures the federal application will require
• State-federal compliance integration plan
• Risk analysis for continuing operations without federal registration after the conditional window closes

For operators already registered or in the application process, we conduct federal compliance audits covering the full Part 1304 recordkeeping framework, Part 1301 security and operational controls, and integration with state compliance programs. Audit deliverables include severity-ranked findings, remediation roadmaps, and SOPs designed to satisfy both DEA and state regulator expectations.

Federal registration creates federal enforcement exposure. We represent registrants in:

• DEA inspections and investigations
• Show cause orders and registration suspension or revocation proceedings under 21 U.S.C. § 824
• Administrative hearings before DEA Administrative Law Judges
• Coordination with state regulatory enforcement when state and federal proceedings overlap

• Cultivators registered as manufacturers under § 1301.13(k), including the cultivation area and Single Convention nominal-price requirements specific to marijuana cultivation
• Manufacturers and processors producing concentrates, infused products, and finished medical marijuana products
• Distributors moving product between licensed entities within the federal-state framework
• Dispensaries and retailers dispensing to qualified medical patients under state programs
• Researchers conducting marijuana research under state and federal authority
• Importers and exporters managing international transactions under DEA and Single Convention frameworks
• Testing laboratories registered as analytical labs under controlled-substance authority
• Multi-state operators coordinating federal registration across multiple state license programs

Multi-state operators face a particular challenge under the rescheduling: each state license operates as a separate basis for federal registration, but federal compliance must be coordinated across the operator’s entire footprint. We work with multi-state operators to:

• Sequence federal registration applications across states in a defensible order
• Develop unified compliance frameworks that satisfy DEA requirements in every state of operation
• Coordinate reporting obligations across multiple state regulators (e.g., California medical operators, New York registered organizations, Massachusetts MTCs) and the DEA
• Address ownership and control questions that arise when federal registration interacts with state True Party of Interest, ownership disclosure, and equity-program requirements