In a case of first impression, earlier today (January 13, 2020), the Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey affirmed an order of a state workers’ compensation judge that required an employer to reimburse its employee for the employee’s use of medical marijuana prescribed for chronic pain following a work-related accident [Hager v. M&K Construction, A-0102-18T3 (approved for publication, Jan. 13, 2020)].
Summary of the Appellate Court’s Decision
While I’ll add more details in a post to come, my initial read indicates the Court concluded the following:
That because the workers’ compensation judge’s order did not require the employer “to possess, manufacture or distribute marijuana, but only to reimburse the former employee for his purchase of medical marijuana, there was no conflict between the federal Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C.S. § 841) and the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act (MMA).