Multistate cannabis operator Curaleaf will pay out another $100,000 over mislabeled products that the company released in Oregon last year.
The multistate operator already settled 10 lawsuits in January and agreed in August to a $130,000 fine and 23-day license suspension in Oregon, according to an OregonLive report. Now, Curaleaf will pay an additional $100,000 to settle a separate class-action lawsuit stemming from the blunder.
RELATED: Oregon Cannabis Customers Can Collect $200 Per Claim Over Select Brand’s Mislabeled Product Settlement
The Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission (OLCC) issued a recall in September 2021 for a product produced by Cura CS, LLC and sold under Curaleaf’s Select brand. The product was labeled as a hemp-derived CBD tincture but actually contained “undisclosed levels of THC,” according to an OLCC press release announcing the recall.
The OLCC then expanded the initial recall a few days later to include a Select tincture that was labeled as containing 1,000 mg of THC because the drops did not actually contain any detectable THC.
RELATED: Mislabeled Cannabis Products Result in Hospitalizations, Lawsuits in Oregon
Curaleaf, which acquired Cura in 2019, acknowledged last year that the company somehow confused the two tinctures and mislabeled them.
At least 13 people reported ingesting the mislabeled products, at least three visited emergency rooms, and at least one individual was hospitalized.
The incident has resulted in multiple lawsuits against Curaleaf, which cited “human error” as the cause of the mishap.
RELATED: 5 Cannabis Packaging and Labeling Tips
The company has since adopted new safety protocols, OregonLive reported, although Curaleaf voluntarily removed thousands of products from medical cannabis dispensary shelves in New York in August after the company switched from wet-weight to dry-weight testing in the state, resulting in higher potencies on the product labels.
A wrongful death case related to the Oregon labeling error was settled last week on confidential terms, according to OregonLive, while two other personal injury cases are pending.
RELATED: UPDATE: Curaleaf to Face Wrongful Death Lawsuit Tied to Mislabeling CBD Products
The latest settlement was filed Oct. 20 with U.S. District Court in Portland, and covers anyone else who bought the mislabeled products, the news outlet reported. It is estimated that 500 individuals will receive payments between $150 and $200 per person, depending on the number of claims filed.
“The average cost of the product at issue was about $25, so consumers will get back 6 to 8 times their purchase price through our settlement,” Michael Fuller, a Portland-based attorney who is representing the plaintiffs, told OregonLive.
The class action lawsuit does not restrict consumers from filing separate personal injury claims, according to the news outlet.