The Cannabis and Psychedelics group at Ballard Spahr counsels clients in these innovative and complicated industries. Perhaps no other industry presents such a unique and complex set of legal issues that require agility, foresight, prudence, and optimism in equal measure. Ballard Spahr has a national team of experienced attorneys who assist at each step along the way. Our legal tracker is a free resource for clients who are seeking to monitor the regulatory regime state-by-state.
The cannabis and CBD industries have come a long way since medical marijuana and Colorado and Washington legalized recreational use in 2012. But the industry still has numerous challenges, and cannabis companies face innumerable legal issues on a daily basis. And similar to the early days of cannabis, the emergent psychedelic industry presents a host of novel intellectual property and regulatory issues. Our co-practice leader, Scott Humphreys, has first-hand experience with these issues, having served as general counsel for a psychedelic company.
Our Cannabis and Psychedelics team advises clients on the wide-ranging issues inherent in the cannabis and psychedelics space, from entity formation, corporate governance, fundraising and transactions to banking, intellectual property, employment, litigation, and government advocacy—a key area in states where the focus now turns to regulation and implementation.
Experience
• Represented Ajna BioSciences PBC, a botanical drug development company, in the formation of a joint venture with Charlotte’s Web, Inc., the market leader in full-spectrum hemp-extract wellness products, to pursue FDA approval for a novel drug to treat neurological conditions.
• Represented a clinical stage biotechnology corporation on patent and trademark matters for technologies related to compositions for pain reduction and nausea reduction.
• Represented a food technology company on patent work for technologies related to cannabinoid edible compositions.