ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Maryland’s second-highest court has ruled that hemp-derived intoxicating products such as delta-8 and delta-10 THC were never legal in the state and may only be sold by licensed cannabis dispensaries.
In a 72-page opinion issued Sept. 9, 2025, the Appellate Court of Maryland decided Governor Wes Moore, et al. v. Maryland Hemp Coalition, et al., reversing a Washington County judge’s preliminary injunction that had temporarily allowed some hemp retailers to keep selling psychoactive products while challenging the state’s Cannabis Reform Act.
Judge Daniel Friedman, writing for the panel, said the Hemp Coalition, which represents hemp farmers and retailers, had no likelihood of success on claims that the state created an unconstitutional monopoly. He emphasized that intoxicating hemp products “are now and have always been illegal in Maryland,” even if lax enforcement and federal ambiguity allowed them to proliferate.
The 2023 Cannabis Reform Act, enacted after voters approved recreational marijuana, prohibits chemically manufactured hemp products such as delta-8 and delta-10 THC. These compounds are commonly sold as gummies, vape cartridges, oils, and other edibles that mimic the effects of marijuana. The law requires that any business selling psychoactive cannabis products obtain a state license. It also created public health safeguards, equity programs for communities harmed by drug enforcement, and numerical limits on licenses. The court found those restrictions serve the public interest and fall within Maryland’s constitutional allowances.
The decision means only licensed dispensaries overseen by the Maryland Cannabis Administration can sell products containing intoxicating levels of THC. Hemp growers may continue producing industrial and non-psychoactive products, such as CBD, textiles, and food products, but psychoactive hemp derivatives remain banned.
The Hemp Coalition had argued the licensing system violated state constitutional protections against monopolies and unequal treatment. But the court said there has never been a “common right” to sell cannabis products because of longstanding prohibitions at the state and federal levels. The judges also ruled that prioritizing “social equity” applicants for licenses is rationally related to remedying harms from the War on Drugs.
The ruling closes what many industry observers had described as Maryland’s “hemp loophole,” ending the sale of delta-8 and delta-10 products outside the regulated cannabis system.
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