Manitoba man pressing on with constitutional challenge of homegrown cannabis ban

A Manitoba man is pressing on with his court challenge of the province's ban on homegrown cannabis, despite the Supreme Court of Canada's recent ruling declaring a similar ban in Quebec is constitutional.

Canada adopted the Cannabis Act in 2018, which allowed residents to legally grow up to four cannabis plants. However, Manitoba has put a ban in place prohibiting any home cultivation of non-medical cannabis.

"The Manitoba government here is purely overstepping the federal criminal law, and that's where we will make our case," Jesse Lavoie told CTV News.

Lavoie launched a constitutional challenge against Manitoba's ban three years ago, arguing Manitobans' rights are being infringed upon by the ban.

Quebec has a similar ban in place, which was the subject of a challenge that went all the way to Canada's high court.

Last week, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled unanimously that Quebec's ban, which prohibits people from possessing and cultivating cannabis plants for personal purposes, was constitutional.

READ MORE: Supreme Court says Quebec ban on homegrown pot plants is constitutional

"Honestly, the uphill battle did get a little more inclined," Lavoie said Monday.

While he said a large portion of the province's arguments hinged on the outcome of the Supreme Court's decision – the case here in Manitoba is different.

"It's a very different system that we have here in Manitoba, so in our opinion, this Quebec ruling does not hold weight over the Manitoba ruling," Lavoie said.

He argued Quebec's ban was put in place to protect a monopoly over cannabis distribution and retail. In Manitoba, however, he said the government does not hold distribution over cannabis (unlike alcohol sales) and it is the onus of the individual licensed producers to distribute to the dispensaries.

Lavoie said he is now awaiting a ruling for his case. A date has not yet been set for when a decision will be released.

He said if the challenge fails, he will likely be launching an appeal.

"It's been three years already. We've spent over $100,000 on legal bills on our end," he said. "We're here right till the end."

A provincial spokesperson told CTV News the province argued its case in the Court of King's Bench last May and is now awaiting the court's decision.