Berkeley Patients Group faces $250K in unpaid bills claims

Three companies have sued the nation’s oldest cannabis dispensary for allegedly failing to pay more than $250,000 in bills, according to local media reports.

Berkeley Patients Group faces lawsuits from a cannabis supplier, security firm and landlord filed over the past 13 months. The dispensary has denied all allegations in court filings.

Flow Cannabis claims $60,605 in unpaid bills for cannabis products in a December 2023 lawsuit, according to court documents obtained by Berkeleyside, a Berkeley news organization.

ABC Security Service Inc. of Oakland alleges the dispensary owes $73,864 for security services dating back to December 2022.

A third lawsuit filed by property owner AZ DV Real Estate seeks $127,160 in unpaid rent for a planned location at 1101 University Ave. that never opened.

The dispensary has operated in Berkeley since 1999, when it opened as a medical marijuana collective. It expanded into recreational cannabis sales in 2018 after California legalized adult use.

However, cannabis prices and product quality have declined since 2018 due to market competition, which dispensary co-owner previously told Berkeleyside . The company has reported annual sales in the tens of millions of dollars, though current figures weren’t available.

The lawsuits come as California’s cannabis retailers face growing market pressures, occasionally amplified by environmental woes. Many struggle with falling wholesale prices while competing against illegal sellers who avoid taxes and regulations.

The dispensary has faced previous challenges. In 2013, it paid $49,500 to settle a $7.5 million state tax bill. Federal prosecutors in 2012 forced it to relocate from San Pablo Avenue to move farther from schools.

Berkeley Patients Group continues operating at its current San Pablo Avenue location, where it has been since the 2012 relocation.