Apart from their assigned mod courses, 1L students may only enroll in courses offered as 1L electives. A complete list of these courses can be found on the 1L Elective Listings page. 1L students must use the 1L class number listed on the course description when enrolling.
294.63 sec. 001 - Psychedelics Law (Spring 2026)
Instructor: Tamar Lorraine Todd (view instructor's teaching evaluations - degree students only)
View all teaching evaluations for this course - degree students only
Units: 1
Grading Designation: Credit Only
Mode of Instruction: In-Person
Meeting:
Th 08:00 AM - 09:50 AM
Location: Law 240
From January 15, 2026
To February 26, 2026
Course End: February 26, 2026
Class Number: 34250
Enrollment info:
Enrolled: 22
Waitlisted: 0
Enroll Limit: 24
As of: 02/07 02:03 PM
In this psychedelics law and policy seminar, students will engage with the rapidly evolving legal landscape as jurisdictions pilot regulated access, decriminalization, and research-driven models to allow access to psychedelics while these substances remain prohibited under federal law. We will grapple with the policy and practical issues that arise when a prohibited category of substances moves toward tightly regulated service models and potential medicalization, including questions of public health, ethics, equity, and governance.
The course will cover the history of psychedelic regulation and its enforcement, the comparative design of recent and innovative state and local programs (e.g., service-center models, decriminalization frameworks, and research or pilot initiatives), and the legal architecture required to implement them, including licensing and training standards, safety and product rules, informed consent, professional liability, land-use considerations, data privacy, and consumer protection. We will examine federal-state interplay under the Controlled Substances Act, DEA scheduling and preemption issues, and FDA pathways for psychedelic-assisted therapies, and Expanded Access/Right-to-Try laws. A sustained through-line of the seminar will be “lessons learned from cannabis”: similarities (federal preemption, state regulators, public health safeguards, equity mechanisms) and what differs for psychedelics (facilitated services vs. retail markets, clinical integration, scope of practice, and claims substantiation).
The instructor has specialized for nearly two decades in drug law and policy. She has been instrumental in drafting cannabis laws, psychedelics laws, and related drug policy laws and voter initiatives across the country and has testified before legislative and governmental bodies in the United States and abroad on the intersection of state innovation and federal law.
Readings and preparation will draw from an eclectic mix of case law, agency guidance and rulemaking, policy analyses, articles and podcasts, government reports, statutes and regulations, advocacy materials, and campaign documents.
Attendance at the first class is mandatory for all currently enrolled and waitlisted students; any currently enrolled or waitlisted students who are not present on the first day of class (without prior permission of the instructor) will be dropped. The instructor will continue to take attendance throughout the add/drop period and anyone who moves off the waitlist into the class must continue to attend or have prior permission of the instructor in order not to be dropped.
Submit teaching evaluations for this course between 26-FEB-26 and 03-MAR-26
Exam Notes: (None) Series of papers or assignments throughout the semester
(Subject to change by faculty member only through the first two weeks of instruction)
Course Category: Public Law and Policy
This course is listed in the following sub-categories:
Social Justice and Public Interest
If you are the instructor or their FSU, you may add a file like a syllabus or a first assignment to this page.
Readers:
No reader.
Books:
Instructor has not yet confirmed their textbook order, please check back later.