Cannabis and Psychedelics Law and Regulation

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Baker Donelson attorneys and public policy advisors are well-positioned and well-equipped to advise companies, financial institutions and investors in this burgeoning industry, on a wide range of legal and public policy issues.

Practice Overview

With the increasing demand for legalized cannabis products and the proliferation of states approving state-level marijuana programs, the legal landscape regarding businesses that interact directly and indirectly with cannabis-related transactions is rapidly changing at the federal, state, and municipal level. Baker Donelson attorneys and policy advisors have the experience and knowledge to advise financial institutions and other businesses connected to the cannabis industry on virtually all of its legal and public policy needs.

Some of the areas in which we advise cannabis industry clients are:

Acquisitions, mergers, and sales, including private equity
Business formation and financing
Corporate and capital markets
Corporate growth and expansion strategies
Cultivation, manufacturing, and distribution
Data security
Employment counseling
Financial institutions and banking
Government investigations and enforcement
Health care
International law
Intellectual property
Licensing and registration
Litigation, including class actions
Marketing and advertising
Product labeling
Public policy and government relations
Real estate, land use, zoning, and environmental
Regulatory compliance
Retail sales
Risk assessment
Tax matters and audits

Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances.

Advised cannabis retailers on point-of-sale issues and concerns, marketing and advertising, online versus brick-and-mortar sales, as well as shipping and delivery, both within the client (e.g., internal distribution networks) and externally with respect to end users/purchasers.
Advised retailers, including national "big box" stores, on entering the legal cannabis market, whether to sell delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-containing products, zero-THC products such as ingestible and topical cannabidiol (CBD), or a combination of both.
Represented a nationally leading CBD company in defending multiple putative class action lawsuits alleging violation of various state consumer protection statutes.
Represented a company seeking a Class 1 or Class 2 low-THC oil production license, which included full cultivation and manufacturing into oil, in the highly regulated state of Georgia.
Advised a cannabis start-up in California on cultivation, manufacturing and distribution.
Advised farmers and agricultural clients on qualifying as a licensed/regulated cannabis grower, processor, or both.
Advised multiple financial institutions on compliance issues related to the handling of funds derived from cannabis-related transactions.
Represented a west coast cannabis cultivator in acquiring a cultivator's license in Washington, D.C. and provided assistance with writing the application, as well as managing all corporate formation and structuring to comply with D.C. regulations.
Wrote a winning courier license application for a national logistics and delivery operator in the first round of courier applications in Washington, D.C.

"D.C. Council Passes Emergency Legislation to Close "Gifting Shops" in the District" (January 2024)
"Maryland Aims to Legislate Labor Peace," Marijuana Venture (December 2023)
"D.C. Council Approves the Cannabis Employment Protections Amendment Act of 2022" (July 2022)
"Got Pot? Can You Test to Find Out?" (May 2021)
"Cannabis Users Getting Greater Employment Protections in Some States" (March 2021)
"USDA Unveils New Federal Hemp Production Rules" (October 2019)
"Growing Interest in Regulation of Hemp" (September 2019)
"Florida Approves Plan for Hemp Production, Despite FDA Constraints on CBD" (August 2019)
"New Hope in Georgia – The Landscape for the Application/Licensing Process for Cannabis" (July 2019)
"USCIS Clarifies: Immigrants Cannot Establish Good Moral Character if Involved in State Licensed Marijuana-Related Activities" (May 2019)
"DOJ Marijuana Memo Goes Up in Smoke – Should Companies Inhale or Exhale?" (January 2018)
"It's Not Reefer Madness, It's Risk Management: Providing Investment Services to the Marijuana-Related Industry" (July 2017)
"Provider Concerns When Recommending Medical Marijuana," reprint, Law360 (June 2017)
"Arkansas Goes to Bat on Medical Marijuana: Hits Homerun for Employers" (May 2017)
"Weed in the Workplace: What You Need to Know" (October 2016)

"Alabama Medical Cannabis Association's Medical Cannabis Banking & Regulatory Symposium" (June 2023)
"International Cannabis Business Conference" (February 2017)
"Weed in the Workplace 2: Still Smoking (Nashville)" (January 2017)
"Cannabis and Its Medicinal Potential: State of the Research and Policy" (December 2016)
"Weed in the Workplace: If Smoke, Do You Fire? (Atlanta)" (November 2016)
"Weed in the Workplace: If Smoke, Do You Fire? (Memphis)" (October 2016)

D.C.'s Cannabis Employment Protections Amendment Act of 2022: What Employers Need to Know (July 2022)
Weed, Leave, and CBD, Oh My! (October 2021)
Medical Marijuana: More Headache than Cure? (September 2019)
Legalized Marijuana and Hemp: From A to Z and Everything in Between (August 2019)
Weed, Trump, and the Workplace: What You Need to Know (May 2017)

Baker Donelson Shareholder Sara M. Turner Elected Second Vice President of DRI (October 22, 2024)
25 Baker Donelson Attorneys Named to 2024 Maryland Super Lawyers List (December 14, 2023)
Sara M. Turner of Baker Donelson Elected Secretary-Treasurer of DRI (November 3, 2023)
Former U.S. Senator Tom Daschle to Be Awarded Japan's Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun (November 3, 2023)
Baker Donelson Continues to Expand Baltimore Team with Addition of Louis Cannon as Shareholder (July 31, 2023)
Corporate Counsel Name Four Baker Donelson Attorneys to BTI Client Service All-Stars 2023 (June 13, 2023)
Baker Donelson Expands Team in DMV Region with Addition of Jordan Savitz as Shareholder (February 16, 2023)
Experienced Regulatory IP Attorney Mark Yacura Joins Baker Donelson (May 31, 2022)
Martha L. Boyd Named Vice Chair of Baker Donelson's Labor & Employment Group (February 14, 2022)
Sara M. Turner Elected as a National Director of DRI (November 10, 2020)

Nathan Daschle Shares with Law360 How Legacies of Tom Daschle and Howard Baker Shape the Philosophy of New Strategic Consulting Firm DB3 (July 15, 2025)
Nathan Daschle Quoted in Politico on Formation of DB3 from The Daschle Group and Baker Donelson's Public Policy Practice (July 14, 2025)
Senator Thomas A. Daschle Featured on The Hill's OpenMic Discussing the Importance of Bipartisanship (June 11, 2025)
Will Somerville Talks with AL.com About the Latest Ruling in Alabama Medical Cannabis Licensing Litigation (March 7, 2025)
Will Somerville Comments on Alabama's Medical Cannabis License Awarding Process on CBS42 (June 12, 2024)
Louis Cannon Talks with Law360's Employment Authority About Potential Revival of Purple Doctrine on Employee Use of Company Communications Platforms in Union Organizing Efforts (May 16, 2024)
Best of the Bar Honoree Sara Turner Shares Her Greatest Career Accomplishment in the Birmingham Business Journal (April 19, 2024)
Will Somerville Reacts to Proposed Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission Legislation on CBS42 (April 16, 2024)
Will Somerville Talks with Alabama Political Reporter About Legal Filing to Remove Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission from Licensing Process (April 15, 2024)
Will Somerville Quoted in Alabama Reflector on Proposed Alabama Legislation to Increase Medical Cannabis Production Licenses (April 2, 2024)
Birmingham Business Journal 40 Under 40 Honoree Jade Sipes Shares Her Proudest Career Accomplishment (February 15, 2024)
Eve Cann Talks with Law360 About Firm's New Fort Lauderdale Office Space (January 26, 2024)
Eve Cann Discusses Baker Donelson's Fort Lauderdale Office Move in South Florida Business Journal (January 23, 2024)
Will Somerville Comments on Alabama's Stalled Medical Cannabis Licensing Process in AL.com (October 13, 2023)
Will Somerville Quoted in AL.com on Negotiations Regarding Alabama Medical Cannabis License Disputes (September 7, 2023)
Law360 Highlights Addition of Corporate Attorney Jordan Savitz (February 17, 2023)
Regulatory IP Attorney Mark Yacura Discusses His Move to Baker Donelson in Law360 (May 31, 2022)
Zachary Busey Quoted in Corporate Compliance Insights on Supreme Court's Vaccine-or-Test Federal Mandates Ruling (January 14, 2022)
Paula Estrada de Martin Featured Among New Orleans CityBusiness Leadership in Law 2021 Honorees (October 12, 2021)
Sara Turner Profiled Among Birmingham Business Journal's 2020 Women to Watch Honorees (December 11, 2020)
Kenneth Abel Comments on Appellate Ruling Regarding Federal Rules of Evidence in ABA Litigation News (July 15, 2020)
Paula Estrada de Martin Featured Among CityBusiness 2019 Women of the Year (November 8, 2019)
Paula Estrada de Martin Featured Among New Orleans Magazine's "Leaders in Law" (November 1, 2019)
Sara Turner Talks with AL.com About Baker Donelson's Generous Parental Leave Policy (October 3, 2019)
Martha Boyd and Jonathan Cole Featured Among Nashville Business Journal's 2019 Best of the Bar Honorees (June 27, 2019)
Paula Estrada de Martin Featured Among Profiles in Diversity Journal's 2018 Women Worth Watching (September 1, 2018)
Martha Boyd Profiled Among Nashville Business Journal's 2018 Best of the Bar (June 29, 2018)
Paula Estrada de Martin Featured in New Orleans CityBusiness's "Ones to Watch" (February 17, 2017)

Key Contact

Sean B. O'Connell

T: 202.508.3435

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Featured Media

Nathan Daschle Shares with Law360 How Legacies of Tom Daschle and Howard Baker Shape the Philosophy of New Strategic Consulting Firm DB3

News / July 15, 2025

Nathan Daschle Quoted in Politico on Formation of DB3 from The Daschle Group and Baker Donelson's Public Policy Practice

News / July 14, 2025

Senator Thomas A. Daschle Featured on The Hill's OpenMic Discussing the Importance of Bipartisanship

News / June 11, 2025

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Baker Donelson is a national law firm with more than 700 attorneys and public policy advisors representing more than 30 practice areas to serve a wide range of legal needs. Clients receive knowledgeable guidance from experienced, multi-disciplined industry and client service teams, all seamlessly connected across more than 20 offices in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.