Events, Marijuana

3 Things You Must Know If You Want To Work In Marijuana Law

If you’re interested in becoming an attorney in the burgeoning marijuana industry, here are some things you need to know before you dive in.

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Earlier this week, Above the Law hosted a marijuana law reception in Denver, Colorado, at Legal Talk Network. The event was very well-attended — in fact, we hosted a standing-room only crowd. We couldn’t have been happier with how this event turned out. For a night of discussion with a rather serious intention, there were plenty of laughs and personal anecdotes shared with a more than attentive audience.

Opening remarks were given by Joshua Kappel of Vicente Sederberg, a founding board member of the National Cannabis Bar Association. The highlight of the evening was a lively discussion, moderated by ATL Editor Staci Zaretsky, about all of the ins and outs of cannabis law. Panelists included Hilary Bricken, Lead Attorney of Harris Moure’s Canna Law Group; Tom Downey, Director at Ireland Stapleton; Sam Kamin, Professor at University of Denver Sturm College of Law; and Brian Ruden, Owner of Starbuds, Tree of Wellness, and Altermeds.

If you’re “sTOKEd” to become an attorney in the burgeoning marijuana industry, here are some takeaways from our esteemed panelists that you can use to get a better understanding of the field before you dive in.

1. You need to be aware of all of the various legal doctrines that are relevant to the practice in this area — and there are a lot of them. From administrative law to criminal law to real estate law to banking law to tax law to regulatory compliance law to contract law to tort law, you really need to be a jack of all trades to represent marijuana clients competently.

2. If you’re a solo practitioner or an attorney in a very small firm, there is no way that you’ll be able to service marijuana clients competently. There is just too much work involved to do it all by yourself. You’ll need a team to assist you, or else you might miss a very important issue along the way.

3. In this field, it’s imperative that you lead your clients, not be led by them. At the same time, you always need to offer your clients practical advice and solutions. Attorneys in this field often offer the most conservative advice available, but no solutions, which can be beyond frustrating for marijuana entrepreneurs who need to know how they can conduct their business legally.

Now for the moment that you’ve all been waiting for: a gallery of all of the pictures taken during our first marijuana law reception, plus a special offer from one of our sponsors. Flip to the next page and take a look! (You can click to enlarge any image.)

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