What Qualifies as Legal Hemp Under the New Federal Rules: Business, Compliance, and Litigation Risks

Shawn Hauser | Vicente LLP

Shawn Hauser is a partner at Vicente LLP, where she co-chairs the firm’s Hemp and Cannabinoids Department and Federal and International Law Group. She helps cannabis, hemp, and psychedelics businesses navigate the intersections between state and federal law and ensure compliance as laws evolve. Her practice focuses on regulatory compliance, licensing, general business representation, policy reform and strategic guidance to best position businesses for success at the state, national, and international levels.

With more than a decade of experience in cannabis law and policy, Shawn is a go-to source for businesses, industry groups, governments, and reporters seeking opinions, analysis, and guidance. She has presented on cannabis law and policy to many local, federal, and international agencies, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and UK Parliament.

Since directing Sensible Colorado’s local government implementation team following the passage of Amendment 64, Shawn remains active in policy work with local and state governments in Colorado and Texas as well as advocating for federal reforms. She is passionate in supporting the development and implementation of cannabis, hemp, and psychedelics regulations that advance the industries responsibly and in support of public health. Active in the community, Shawn currently serves on the Board of Directors of United States Cannabis Council, and previously served on boards of the International Cannabis Bar Association and on the steering committee of the American Hemp Campaign—a project of Vote Hemp—which was instrumental in legalizing hemp in Texas in 2019.

Well-regarded in her field, Shawn has received many accolades. She was named one of the top cannabis lawyers in the United States Chambers and Partners and was recognized by her peers in The Best Lawyers in America® for her work in cannabis law. Additionally, Shawn has been listed in 5280 magazine’s “Denver’s Top Lawyers” list since 2015 and was included in Denver Business Journal’s “40 Under 40” in 2021.

Todd A. Harrison | Venable LLP

Todd A. Harrison is a partner in Venable LLP’s Food and Drug Law Group who counsels companies on the regulation, labeling, marketing, and risk profile of consumer products, especially foods, beverages, dietary supplements, and emerging botanical/cannabinoid products. He is widely recognized for guiding hemp and CBD stakeholders through the evolving federal framework, including the 2018 Farm Bill hemp definition, FDA jurisdiction over ingestible cannabinoids, and the compliance and enforcement risks that arise when products drift into Controlled Substances Act territory.

Todd has been at the center of the national hemp conversation for years. When the 2018 Farm Bill removed hemp from Schedule I, he was quoted in industry coverage emphasizing that the legislation preserved FDA authority over foods and supplements containing CBD and forecasting the need for robust THC testing and compliant destruction protocols for “hot” extracts. Most recently, he co-authored Venable’s November 2025 analysis of Congress’s new federal funding bill amendment redefining hemp around a “total THC” standard, expressly counting THCA and other tetrahydrocannabinols, imposing a 0.4 mg per-container finished-product cap, and excluding chemically converted/synthetic cannabinoids, exactly the regulatory pivot at the core of this program.

In addition to cannabinoid work, Todd regularly defends and advises clients facing FDA and FTC scrutiny over safety, labeling, structure/function claims, and advertising, and he is a frequent speaker on high-stakes regulatory developments affecting the supplement and novel-ingredient marketplace. His practice experience makes him especially well-suited to address the webinar’s practical questions: which hemp-derived products will lose lawful status under the new definition, how manufacturers and retailers should manage the one-year compliance runway, and where enforcement and private litigation exposure is most likely to surface as federal and state rules diverge.

Session I – The Farm Bill Framework and the Updated Federal Overhaul of “Hemp” | 1:00pm – 2:00pm

• The 2018 Farm Bill’s legalization model and statutory definition of hemp
• The role of delta-9 THC dry-weight testing and its compliance implications
• How the “intoxicating hemp loophole” developed in the market
• The new federal funding bill: Scope and purpose of the amendment
• Transition from delta-9-only analysis to a “total THC” federal standard
• Inclusion of THCA and other tetrahydrocannabinols in the hemp calculation
• New finished-product THC cap and its legal effect on consumer products
• Exclusion of synthetically derived/converted cannabinoids from hemp status
• Effective date and the 12-month federal compliance runway

Break | 2:00pm – 2:10pm

Session II – Business, Compliance, and Litigation Consequences for Hemp and Derivative Products | 2:10pm – 3:10pm

• Product categories likely to lose hemp status under the new definition
  • Intoxicating hemp derivatives (e.g., delta-8/delta 10/HHC-type products)
  • High-THC hemp beverages and edibles
  • Full-spectrum CBD products exceeding the federal cap
• Controlled Substances Act implications once products fall outside “hemp”
• Compliance strategies for manufacturers during the transition period
  • Reformulation and testing protocols
  • Labeling, COA documentation, and audit preparedness
  • Vendor representations, warranties, and allocation of risk
• Exposure for retailers and distributors
  • Inventory wind-down and recall preparation
  • Federal vs. state law divergence and multi-jurisdictional risk
• Anticipated agency guidance and unresolved interpretive issues
• Near-term enforcement, litigation, and transactional issues to watch