Four Massachusetts Kratom Retailers Sue to Block Emergency Schedule I Order Before August 28 Effective Date

Why it matters

The lawsuit challenges whether a state health commissioner has the legal authority to unilaterally schedule the entire kratom plant as Schedule I through an emergency order — a question with implications for how states regulate kratom and other unscheduled substances.

The big picture

Emergency regulatory orders face a persistent legal challenge: courts have struck them down when the underlying data describes long-standing trends rather than sudden emergencies. The same argument has succeeded in kratom-related litigation in other states. The Massachusetts lawsuit was filed just days before the August 28 effective date, seeking a temporary restraining order that could delay enforcement statewide. Massachusetts recorded 100-plus kratom-associated deaths since 2020 and poison center calls are surging, but plaintiffs argue this reflects chronic conditions — not an emergency requiring Schedule I classification of the natural plant.

Key findings

• Four retailers filed suit in Suffolk County Superior Court on August 22, seeking a TRO and preliminary injunction: Jay's Smoke Shop (Salem), Bhakti LLC (North Billerica), V&K Smoke Shop (Quincy), Ambreen & S Inc. (Bellingham)
• Lawsuit argues Commissioner Goldstein failed to satisfy three statutory findings required to classify a substance Schedule I via emergency order under Massachusetts law
• Complaint contends the order is overbroad — covering all natural kratom, not just high-potency synthetic 7-OH derivatives that regulators say pose the greatest risk
• Plaintiffs warn the order would immediately turn their inventories into contraband, causing irreparable financial and reputational harm
• Massachusetts Poison Center kratom-related calls in 2026 are on pace to exceed all of 2025

What they say

"Plaintiffs do not dispute that some kratom products raise genuine public-health concerns...Plaintiffs' claims concern whether the Commissioner complied with the statutes that govern how the Commonwealth may declare a substance a Schedule I controlled substance, and whether the regulation he adopted is supported by the reasons he gave." — Complaint by Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton attorneys

Bottom line

Massachusetts kratom retailers sued two days before the August 28 ban, arguing the emergency order is legally defective and too broad — and the outcome could set a national precedent for state responses to DEA scheduling actions.