The Marijuana Prize - Legal Issues

Legal Issues

Theoretically, there is a path in the United States where you could apply for legal licensing and permission to perform this research. Theoretically, that is.

However, there isn't a snowball's chance in Hell that anyone could ever get through the licensing process in one lifetime. The US Government has never encouraged open research into marijuana, and they aren't about to start any time soon. Therefore, anyone within the United States should not even attempt this.

It is not difficult for someone with the proper training and equipment to transplant genes from one organism to another. Undergraduate college biology students have done similar things in a few hours using twenty-year-old technology. The tools to do this could be found at any college or university with a decent biology laboratory, or ordered through the Internet. A smart, determined hobbyist might be able to do this in their spare bedroom. The technology is freely available. The costs are not huge and are dropping every year.

But it isn't legal in the US, so anyone living in the US should not even think about it. The US Federal Government says it would be wrong.

The Federal Government says that any possession of marijuana is wrong. You should not do anything that the US Federal Government thinks is wrong.

Unfortunately, this research will probably have to be done in other countries. Because of our laws, we will lose one more technological advantage to foreign countries.

We assume no responsibility or liability for the actions of others. Entrants are solely responsible for determining whether their research is legal and properly licensed in their jurisdiction. Anyone who wishes to do such research should consult a local attorney before beginning such research, and they should follow the advice of their attorney in all legal matters.

There is no requirement that the resulting product be distributed to anyone, anywhere, other than to qualified testing laboratories under properly licensed and legal circumstances.

DO NOT send us sample results, as the receipt of such products would be illegal in the United States under Federal law. We have no desire to break US Federal Government laws. Notify us when you have samples ready for testing and we will have one of our compatriots in your country contact you. Our sole interest is proof of concept and demonstrating the ease with which such products may be created -- under circumstances where such research is legal and properly licensed.

We will base prize awards on:

The technical documents submitted to describe a process that can be peer-reviewed and replicated, and;
Independent laboratory verification that the product has met the stated requirements -- i.e., proof that the technical description submitted actually worked.

However, if you live in the US and you know how to do this, we encourage you to submit technical information that might be helpful to others. Such information will be posted on our Research page.