Top EU court rules in favour of medicinal cannabis patient

Cannabis News World

Nov 29

Top EU court rules in favour of medicinal cannabis patient
Cannabis Health News

A patient has won an appeal in the Court of Justice of the European Union to remain in the Netherlands in order to continue accessing cannabis treatment. A medical cannabis patient fighting deportation in the Netherlands has won their case in a landmark ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union this week. The Russian national was appealing an asylum rejection on the grounds that he would lose access to his medicinal cannabis treatment if he returned to his home country. In what may be the first case of its kind regarding medical cannabis, on Tuesday 22 November, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled in the patient's favour, deeming that his access to the treatment overruled the illegality of his stay in the Netherlands. The individual, who developed a rare form of blood cancer at the age of 16, is currently receiving the treatment for analgesic purposes to manage pain. However, the use of medicinal cannabis is still prohibited in Russia. After a number of his requests for asylum were rejected – the last of which was in 2020 – he brought an action before the rechtbank Den Haag (District Court of the Hague) against the decision. His case argued that he should be issued with a residence permit or that his removal should be postponed on the grounds that the treatment is 'so essential to him that he would no longer be able to lead a decent life if it was discontinued' and may even become depressed and suicidal. Drawing on its own case law and that of the European Court of Human Rights, the court ruled that to force the patient to return to Russia would be a breach of EU law and risked exposing him to 'inhuman' treatment. A press statement issued…