The state-protected cannabis industry in Illinois is controlled by a “Chicago Cartel” that includes companies run by the wealthy Kovler, Pritzker, and Wrigley families, a lawsuit filed on Monday by cannabis anti-monopolization group True Social Equity in Cannabis claims.
The cartel has monopolized the legal cannabis industry in Illinois from cultivation, manufacturing and retail dispensary, the plaintiff alleges. Defendants Akerna Corp., Green Thumb Industries Inc., Surterra Holdings Inc. and Verano Holdings Corp. collude together to control prices in these markets. As a result, a pound of marajunaa sells for more than $4,000 in Illinois, compared to $300 in a competitive market like California, the lawsuit claims.
“The ‘Chicago Cartel’ can control prices in these markets because supply and demand can be reasonably predicted and forecast by the ‘Chicago Cartel’ members who share price information and collude to charge monopolist prices,” the lawsuit states.
The cartel began in 2014 with a partnership between Michael McClain, co-defendant in the Michael Madigan corruption case, Terrance Gainer, former chief of the U.S. Capitol Police, and Benjamin Kovler, heir to the Jim Beam bourbon fortune. This partnership later morphed to include a much larger group of people and entities, including previously named defendants, according to the lawsuit.
The plaintiff is represented by Langone Law LLC and is seeking equitable relief under Section 16 of Clayton Act.
