The Enlightened Esquire

A clarification I find myself making with founders constantly: decriminalization is not legalization. They are not the same thing. A business model built on a misread of decriminalization is a business model built on enforcement discretion.

Decriminalization typically means a local prosecutor will not prioritize charging certain low-level offenses. It does not authorize commerce. It does not authorize manufacture. It does not authorize distribution. It does not protect employees, premises, or financial relationships from federal exposure.

Federal law continues to classify most psychedelics as Schedule I. Decriminalization at the city or county level does not change that.

Where founders go wrong: they read a decriminalization headline and assume they can build a service business on top of it. They sign leases. They hire employees. They take payment for things the federal government still considers illegal.

The careful path is to build under a framework that actually authorizes the work — Oregon’s regulated framework, Colorado’s, religious-use protections, medical exemptions for ketamine. Or to build without psychedelics in the value chain at all (training, integration support, education).

The legal landscape moves quickly. The principles do not. Read each new development carefully before you build on it.

First shared on LinkedIn by Deja Correia, J.D. Educational only; not legal advice.