Legal news and commentary from the offices of Simon Dippenaar
Your conviction is not wiped clean yet! What happens to convictions for possession of cannabis, now that the law has changed? Are criminal convictions automatically expunged, because the offence is no longer illegal? Or is a conviction forever based on the law in force at the time the offence was committed? We explain. Decriminalisation for […]
Court rules grow clubs do not constitute “private use” The Haze Club is – or was – a cooperative-type arrangement whereby individuals brought their own seeds to the club to be cultivated by horticulturists, in return for the harvested and dried plant for their private use when ready. Grow clubs like this, claims owner Neil […]
Warning comes amid rise in expulsions under federal law – even in states where drug is legal Don’t be fooled by the use of “Britons” in the headline. This article first appeared in the Guardian, a UK newspaper, hence the focus on Britons, but the warning applies to all visitors to the US. As cannabis […]
Cannabis to be grown for medicinal use in Cape Town In our practice and on this website we have followed the cannabis story closely, from the first ruling that cannabis consumption in private by adults would not be prosecuted on the basis of privacy laws, to the legalisation of cannabis for personal use by the […]
Parliament has amended legislation regarding dagga use and police officers have received instruction from the Police Commissioner We wrote last year about the Constitutional Court ruling regarding dagga, or cannabis. The ConCourt judgement effectively decriminalised the possession and cultivation of cannabis in private by adults for personal consumption. The definition of “in private” extends beyond one’s […]
Cannabis – The seriousness of the crime and the sentence are much greater for dealing, but what determines dealing vs. possession? Many of you may recall that last year the Western Cape High Court ruled that cannabis (dagga or marijuana) can be used by adults in the privacy of their own homes, and […]
