An analysis of habeas corpus for domestic marijuana cultivation in Brazil

Abstract

This study stems from collective research into the legal framework surrounding the home cultivation of cannabis for therapeutic purposes. Since the beginning of the 2010s, a process of change occurred in the regulation of cannabis in Brazil, changing the legal status of two of its components, cannabidiol and tetrahydrocannabinol and authorized the import of medicines from the plant by the National Health Surveillance Agency. Despite these advances, many patients still face difficulties accessing treatment, especially because of its high cost. In this context, lawyers, activists, and patients have created a strategy of using habeas corpus as a safe-conduct for the legal cultivation of the plant and the artisanal production of its oil. This study examines this process. Based on ethnographic research, interviews, and an analysis of the documents that make up the habeas corpus, this study seeks to highlight two of its specificities: the legal figure of the ‘habeas corpus patient for cultivation’ and the process of ‘judicialization of cultivation.’