Legal / criminal consequences of behaviours related to cannabis: doctrinal positions and jurisprudential criteria

Abstract

Behaviours related to cannabis, including its consumption, possession and cultivation, must comply with the provisions of the legal system, otherwise they could constitute an administrative offence or even a criminal offence. The confusion between administrative and criminal regulation, together with a tolerant social attitude towards cannabis, could partly explain the erroneous belief that these behaviours are always fully legitimate. This article will address the criminal legal regulation of behaviours related to this substance - which the jurisprudence of the Supreme Court considers to be a drug that does not cause serious harm to health -, examining some of the most controversial issues that arise in judicial practice, especially in relation to cannabis associations and social clubs, such as the possible application of the doctrine of shared consumption or the error of prohibition, taking into account the most recent jurisprudential criteria in this area.