Grand Daddy Purp will be protected

Oceanside attorney David Branfman has no doubt that marijuana will become legal for recreational use statewide in November.

He is so sure that he has already reconfigured his four-person law practice anticipating what seems to be the inevitable passage of proposition 64, the so-called Adult Use of Marijuana Act. One poll had it at 60% approval.

Branfman says he knows of six other local attorneys who will now focus on servicing the need to litigate weed. “There are probably a lot more attorneys besides those six but who are still undercover. I’m out of the cannabis closet.”

Pot’s new legal status would create a new demand for legally protecting those who may claim ownership of certain strains of cannabis with clever names like Bubba Kush, Blue Dream, or Girl Scout Cookies.

He says some pot entrepreneurs are maneuvering to secure rights to True Humboldt and Marley Natural.

“We have a client right now who is the originator of a strain called Grand Daddy Purp and we’re helping him develop a certification process to certify that when dispensaries sell something called Grand Daddy Purp it’s the real deal with his seal of approval on it.”

Branfman says the U.S. Patent Office has recently issued some patents on marijuana strains, but that there is some controversy in legal circles about whether ownership claims will hold up in a court of law.

Branfman has long specialized in intellectual property law, heretofore focusing on the music business. His clients have included Steve Poltz, Common Sense, and the estate of legendary L.A. producer/impresario Kim Fowley.

“The economies of the music industry changed when the delivery of music switched to the Internet,” Branfman explains. “The record labels became less inclined to sponsor and support new and upcoming so-called baby acts.…. Meanwhile the economies of California cannabis started going in the other direction — up.”