Medical Marijuana Tenant
& Landlord Attorneys

With the changing political and economic environment, you, a landlord, may have come to realize the benefit of having a medical marijuana dispensary as your tenant.

Many landlords are uncomfortable with the ambiguity inherent in medical marijuana related enterprises. And many landlords are primarily concerned with possible criminal liability or even government forfeiture of their property as a result of renting to a marijuana dispensary. Our office has represented landlords throughout Southern California. We provide landlords and landowners legal services to minimize their liability and risk when renting to medical marijuana businesses.

Among these areas of legal services are:

• Drafting, negotiating, and documenting all forms of commercial leases.


• Legal advisement on minimizing federal culpability.


• Defending landlords in federal civil and criminal forfeiture proceedings.

The Federal Property Forfeiture Process

The seizure of property is a government practice, which dates back centuries. For example, during English antiquity an object could be forfeited to the Queen or King of England if that object caused the death of a person. Forfeiture was generally justified as a penalty for carelessness.

Today the seizure of property by law enforcement authorities is permissible when the property is evidence of a crime or is subject to forfeiture.

There are two types of forfeiture actions, criminal or civil forfeiture. The criminal forfeiture action is against the person. If that person is convicted, the punitive effect of forfeiture can be used against the property, if it is owned by the convicted person.

Civil forfeiture action is against the property and not the person. The two actions differ in three ways: (1) the point in the proceeding, generally at which the property may be seize, (2) the burden of proof necessary to forfeit the property, and (3) in some cases, the type of property interests that can be forfeited.

A criminal forfeiture action must be heard in court before a judge. In order to gain possession of the property, the government must meet the legal standard of proof, beyond a reasonable doubt, that is necessary to convict the defendant and to forfeit the property. As a general rule, the seizure of the property through criminal forfeiture may not occur until the property owner has been convicted and the property has been forfeited.

The civil forfeiture laws generally name specific property that is integrally connected with prohibited activity (e.g., the property used to launder money, furnish money, or property used). A civil forfeiture action is effected through either a summary, administrative, or judicial procedure. The initial burden of proof on the government to seize property for civil, administrative, and judicial forfeiture is probable cause, or “a reasonable ground for belief of guilt.”

If the government successfully meets the probable cause standard, it will seize the property. The United States Attorney’s office must then determine whether the property can be forfeited. If it is found that the forfeiture action is meritorious, a verified complaint is filed in the court, in effect charging the property with violating the law.

The burden is then on the government to prove the property is subject to forfeiture by a preponderance of the evidence, "superior evidentiary weight that, though sufficient to free the mind wholly from all reasonable doubt, is still sufficient to incline a fair and impartial mind to one side of the issue rather than the other." If the government meets the preponderance standard, then the government may take the property.

If you have questions regarding a lease or federal forfeiture law, please feel free to call or e-mail our offices or contact us via our contact page.