The Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management eliminate its planned social equity preapproval process after a series of lawsuits led to a judge halting the agency's social equity lottery, which was planned for Nov.

Minnesota’s Office of Cannabis Management on Wednesday announced that it’s canceling a planned lottery for special early cannabis licenses intended to help disadvantaged entrepreneurs get a leg-up in the nascent legal marijuana market.

Amid legal disputes, the Office of Cannabis Management will no longer hold a pre-approval lottery for certain marijuana business applicants. Instead, the process will be revamped heading into 2025, making an early-year launch to retail sales difficult to achieve.