A Nevada-licensed marijuana producer is breaking ground with a Canadian stock listing that allows it to raise funds to grow and sell pot in the legally murky U.S. market, likely opening the door for an influx of others.

Friday Night Inc. made its public trading debut Friday on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) and saw its shares spike 467 per cent to close its first day with a market value of $44.2 million, suggesting there is significant investor interest in companies with U.S. state licences to cultivate cannabis.

U.S. marijuana companies are forbidden to list on public stock exchanges in their home country because the drug is considered a Schedule I narcotic at the federal level.

A desperate Perth mum is being forced to fly to the US to get treatment for her sick daughter, even though medicinal cannabis is legal in Western Australia.

Twelve-year-old Ava suffers from epilepsy, has had two brain surgeries, and without medicinal marijuana used to have up to eight seizures a day.

Her angry mother is so fed up with the difficulty in getting a prescription for her daughter that she plans to take her family to the US next month. 

All this time we’ve been wondering who the pro marijuana voice of reason in the Trump’s circle would be. With so many in Trump’s campaign that are clearly prohibitionist, the chances of any real supporters seemed slimmer than ever.

Then, six months into Trump’s presidency, an incredibly stunning development has breathed new life into the hopes of marijuana supporters around the country.

Nine months after Oregon issued the toughest rules in the nation to keep pesticide-tainted marijuana off store shelves, the state acknowledges that some contaminated products continue to reach consumers.

The admission underscores the tricky work of effectively regulating a plant long tied to illegal pesticide use.

Oregon, like other states with legal marijuana, wrote its own rules to crack down on pesticides in cannabis production. But it has faced a backlash from parts of the state's nearly $320 million industry over the expense and inefficiency of the requirements and the inconsistency of the results.

Eyeing a June 30 deadline to get a bill to Gov. Charlie Baker's desk, the Massachusetts Senate on Friday released a proposal that attempts to come closer to the recreational marijuana law voters approved in November.

Through a ballot question, voters broadly legalized usage of recreational marijuana by adults ages 21 and over. But state lawmakers, who mostly opposed the ballot question, repeatedly said they planned to make changes if it passed.

The Senate proposal keeps in place voter referendums, rather than handing over control over pot bans to the governing entities of cities and towns as the House version does.

"Keeping the voters' voice is important," Patricia Jehlen, the Senate chair of the Legislature's Marijuana Policy Committee, told MassLive.com.

Sales in the legal marijuana business are blazing hot, brushing $6.7 billion in 2016 -- but projections are expected to climb even higher to as much as $20 billion in sales by 2021, according to cannabis research firm Arcview Market Research. 

Despite the uptick in overall sales, the industry is still struggling to find its footing as those in the public space continue to battle turning a profit.

Medical Marijuana Inc. (MJNA) , a $321 million market cap company that claims to be the first publicly traded medicinal cannabis firm, is no different. While doubling revenue over the last year, the company is still struggling to turn a profit. 

Medical marijuana in Louisiana is moving closer to production, with a contractor for the growing operation chosen by Louisiana State University.

The LSU AgCenter has selected a New Orleans affiliate of a Las Vegas company to do the work. GB Sciences was chosen from seven potential vendors.

A contract awaits consideration by the university governing board on Thursday.

Louisiana lawmakers agreed to a framework for dispensing medical marijuana in 2015.

The law will eventually get medicinal-grade marijuana to people with cancer, a severe form of cerebral palsy, seizure disorders, epilepsy, muscular dystrophy and other diseases. Eligible patients are expected to have access to the drug next year.

The federal government’s top attorney wants the freedom to prosecute states — such as Iowa — with medical marijuana programs, according to a letter made public last week.

But Iowa officials insist the state’s newly expanded program, which now includes the opportunity for two businesses to grow and sell medical cannabis, will remain safe from federal scrutiny.

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions on May 1 wrote a letter to congressional leaders opposing a mechanism in the federal budget that prohibits the Department of Justice from using its resources to prosecute states that establish medical marijuana laws.

A task force consisting of state senators and representatives will soon take a harder look at issues around medical marijuana in Tennessee.

Lt. Governor Randy McNally and speaker Beth Harwell are responsible for appointing lawmakers to the task force. McNally expects those appointments to be made in July.

Rep. Jeremy Faison introduced a bill for medical marijuana in February. He's optimistic that this joint task force will help both educate the general public on the science of medical marijuana as well as educate lawmakers on the extent of the support to medical marijuana in Tennessee.

Roger Stone, a close confidant of President Donald Trump, is on a mission to convince Trump to legalize marijuana through a new lobbying group.