The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals ruled Friday in favor of the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission, dismissing a lawsuit that had sought to block the agency’s licensing process.

The case was brought by Jemmstone Alabama LLC and other companies that were denied licenses, including Bragg Canna of Alabama, Insa Alabama and Alabama Always. The applicants had argued the AMCC’s licensing decisions and internal rules were unlawful.

The court found that the Montgomery Circuit Court never had authority to hear the case in the first place. Because the AMCC had not issued final licenses, the court ruled, there was nothing for the applicants to challenge yet.

The ruling throws out a permanent injunction the lower court had entered against the AMCC and orders the case dismissed.

The decision validates the AMCC’s argument that applicants must first go through the commission’s administrative hearing process before turning to the courts.

Those hearings have been underway since last summer, overseen by former Alabama Supreme Court Associate Justice Bernard Harwood.

In December, the commission voted to award the state’s first dispensary licenses, removing the final regulatory barrier to a functioning program. AMCC Chairman Rex Vaughan said at the time that qualified patients could begin receiving medical cannabis as early as spring 2026.

Sawyer Knowles is a capitol reporter for Yellowhammer News. You may contact him at sawyer@yellowhammernews.com.