Our representative experience includes the following:

• Advised PharmaCann Inc., one of the largest privately held, vertically integrated cannabis companies in the United States, in its merger with LivWell Holdings, Inc., a multi-state cannabis cultivation and retail leader based in Colorado.
• Advised PepsiCo on the launch of Rockstar Unplugged, a new kind of energy drink containing hemp seed oil.
• Advised Molson Coors in forming joint ventures with HEXO Corp., a Canadian cannabis producer.
• Represented Schwazze in its strategic acquisition of 13 Star Buds retail cannabis dispensaries in Colorado. The transaction valued the Star Buds dispensaries at approximately $118 million.
• Represented Schwazze in an $11.3 million deal to acquire Southern Colorado Growers (SCG).
• Authored and filed an amicus brief on behalf of the National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA) in a landmark tax case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that seeks to overturn a federal tax code ruling preventing legal cannabis businesses from deducting normal business expenses. The appeal concerns Internal Revenue Code Section 280E, which prohibits marijuana businesses, including medical marijuana businesses, from deducting ordinary business expenses from federal taxes. Harborside, a medical marijuana dispensary, is currently facing a bill for $11 million in federal back taxes. The case, Harborside Health Center v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, challenges the applicability of Internal Revenue Code Section 280E to state-legal, regulated cannabis businesses. NCIA’s brief explains how the IRS’s enforcement of Section 280E exceeds the federal government’s taxing power and thus violates the Eighth and Sixteenth amendments of the U.S. Constitution.
• Provided regulatory and compliance counsel to Cookies, one of North America’s leading cannabis brands.
• Provided legal and regulatory compliance advice to Caliva, a marijuana dispensary in California, which Business Insider has described as the best dispensary in the United States.
• Advised Natural Grocers on state regulation of CBD products.
• Advising POSaBIT regarding laws related to payments.
• Conducted an internal investigation for a recreational/medical cannabis dispensary in California.
• Advised multiple companies on developing technology to support the cannabis/hemp/CBD industries with respect to beverages, food additives, and pharmaceuticals. These included the North American subsidiary of a multinational equipment manufacturer based in Europe and a European multinational seeking to do business in North America.
• Advised one of the largest payment processors in the credit card payment industry regarding processing cannabis fees.
• Provided legal and regulatory compliance advice to a multinational company that is exploring providing cloud-based human resources support to the cannabis industry.
• Advised a grower in connection with a potential sale transaction.
• Lead negotiator for groundbreaking cannabis industry collective bargaining agreement for dispensary/delivery client.
• Lead counsel for cannabis industry class actions concerning employee classification and wage-and-hour issues.
• Represented cannabis clients in financing and acquisition context, including due diligence and executive employment work.
• Advised food and beverage companies regarding regulatory, compliance, and criminal law aspects of CBD-infused beverages and food products.
• Assisted clients wishing to invest in companies working in or around the cannabis industry on navigating the industry landscape.
• Advised companies providing system and data processing technology to businesses in the cannabis industry regarding regulatory, compliance, and criminal law aspects of the industry.
• Advised third-party sellers, e-commerce companies, and online advertising platforms wishing to advertise cannabis products on a national or state level.
• Advised real estate and construction companies seeking to do business with the cannabis industry.
• Conducted due diligence relating to a pet food company.
• Advised multiple companies in the cannabis industry on securing and enforcing trademark and other intellectual property rights.