Cannabis board chair who contested firing is on track to return after judge’s ruling

The chairperson of Massachusetts’ cannabis regulatory agency is on track to regain her job, a year after the state treasurer attempted to fire her.

An Appeals Court judge ruled late Wednesday that Treasurer Deborah Goldberg has not shown that she’s likely to succeed in her appeal of a court order reinstating Shannon O’Brien as chair of the Cannabis Control Commission, clearing the path for O’Brien’s return.

Goldberg appointed O’Brien to the job in September 2022, but suspended her in September 2023 and fired her in September 2024, following complaints that she had made inappropriate workplace comments and contributed to a hostile culture at the agency.

In her order Wednesday, Judge Gloria Tan denied Goldberg’s request to pause O’Brien’s return to her job while the treasurer appeals a de