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German high court rules against medicinal cannabis advertisements David Brown StratCann Thursday 26 Mar 2026 In a ruling posted on March 26, 2026, the First Civil Senate of the Federal Court of Justice, which handles competition law in Germany, ruled that a company operating an online platform that brokers medical cannabis treatments and connects patients with cooperating doctors violates medicinal product advertising law by publicly advertising prescription drugs. The defendant, the Bloomwell Group, Europe’s largest digital platform for medical cannabis-based therapy, based in Frankfurt, had taken the challenge to the top court. Bloomwell argued that its approach to advertising its services was not an endorsement that would violate German law, which the court ultimately disputed. The plaintiff in the case was the German Federation of Consumer Organizations (Wettbewerbszentrale) which argued that the defendant’s website was a violation of Germany’s advertising ban under pharmaceutical law. In a statement on Linkedin, Bloomwell CEO Niklas Kouparanis said the ruling focused on whether medical cannabis should be regarded as a form of therapy in general or whether it is subject to the strict advertising regulations for ready-to-use medicinal products. He noted that the complaints brought to the court were based on two screenshots of a website that has since been changed. “As a result of the ruling, we will thoroughly examine the presentation of our website and make minor adjustments if necessary,” said Kouparanis. “The website at issue in the judgment has not existed in this form for years. Therefore, nothing stands in the way of the ongoing operation of our app and our website. In addition, the ruling shows that the legal apparatus works, and that an adjustment of the MedCanG is not necessary.” Germany’s Medicinal Cannabis Act (MedCanG), which came into force on April 1, 2024, regulates medical cannabis explicitly as a pharmaceutical product. The ruling, Kouparanis added, will “massively” restrict patients’ ability “to obtain comprehensive information about cannabis therapies” and characterized the judges’ ruling as “absurd.” From the judge’s ruling: “According to Section 3 Paragraph 1 Sentence 1 of the German Medical Cannabis Act (MedCanG), cannabis for medical purposes is a prescription-only medicine. The defendant advertised this product in the prohibited presentations. They did not limit itself to stating an active ingredient, but rather named medical cannabis and further specified its applications. “The fact that they did not mention specific product names or manufacturers is irrelevant. Even advertising that refers to an entire class of prescription-only medicines for the treatment of the same condition can constitute advertising for medicinal products. The fact that the decision to prescribe medical cannabis rests exclusively with physicians does not preclude the classification as advertising for medicinal products in this case. Due to the defendant’s statements regarding the possible uses of medical cannabis, there was a risk, which Section 10 Paragraph 1 of the German Advertising Act for Medicinal Products (HWG) aims to prevent, that consumers would insist on a prescription for such a medicine during doctor’s visits. “The online presentations are designed to promote the sale of medical cannabis. The isolated presentation of the benefits of cannabis treatment goes beyond providing appropriate, comprehensive information about possible therapies using medical cannabis.” In January, the Frankfurt Regional Court granted an application by the AKNR (Association of North Rhine-Westphalian Medical Practitioners) for a preliminary injunction against Bloomwell prohibiting the company from using celebrity endorsements, to advertise medical cannabis, and from offering free prescriptions as a purchase incentive. Canada is the largest exporter of cannabis into Germany’s medical cannabis market. https://stratcann.com/news/german-high-court-rules-against-medicinal-cannabis-advertisements/
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