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Maine Supreme Court rules Kittery marijuana lawsuit can proceed

FILE - In this March 25, 2018 file photo, a visitor examines a marijuana sample at the New England Cannabis Convention in Boston. Three New England states legalized recreational marijuana, but there is still no place to buy pot legally in the region. Sunday, July 1, 2018, had been the target date to open pot shops in Massachusetts, but no retail licenses have yet been awarded. Possession of small amounts of recreational marijuana becomes legal in Vermont that day, but the law has no provisions for retail sales. Pot shops aren't expected in Maine until 2019 at earliest. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)
Steven Senne/AP
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AP
FILE - In this March 25, 2018 file photo, a visitor examines a marijuana sample at the New England Cannabis Convention in Boston.

The state supreme court has ruled that a lawsuit challenging Kittery's licensing process for recreational cannabis stores can go forward.

High Maine LLC sued the town in October 2023, but the Superior Court dismissed the complaint, saying the company lacked standing. But the Supreme Judicial Court today disagreed, vacating the dismissal and sending the case back to the Superior Court to proceed.

The lawsuit argues the town's lottery-style license system is flawed, and unfairly granted a license to GTF Kittery 8 — which submitted two store proposals that were later merged, and illegally proposed a location within 1,000 feet from a school or daycare.

The Supreme Court found that High Maine was deprived of the opportunity to compete on equal footing for the license, and as such, has standing to file the lawsuit.

Kaitlyn Budion is Maine Public’s Bangor correspondent, joining the reporting team after several years working in print journalism.