The Second Circuit’s chief judge on Thursday expressed doubt that the US Constitution’s interstate commerce protections apply to the cannabis market, which is still illegal at the federal level.

The question of whether the constitution’s dormant commerce clause—a doctrine that prohibits state laws from restricting interstate commerce—applies to the cannabis industry is key to a case brought by the owners of Variscite NY Four LLC and Variscite NY Five LLC who say they were harmed when the state excluded them from receiving “extra priority” review for their adult-use license application because they were convicted of marijuana offenses in California. New …