Welcome to Higher Law, our new weekly briefing about all things cannabis. I'm Cheryl Miller, reporting for Law.com from Sacramento. Check out what cannabis lawyers tell me about vetting prospective clients who are coming out of the shadows and into the regulated market. Scroll down for more on how marijuana practices are expanding in California. Plus: First-quarter federal lobbying disclosures reveal some of the new marijuana advocacy happening in Washington. Thanks for reading—and I love your feedback. Drop me a line at [email protected] or call me at 916-448-2935. I'm also tweeting @CapitalAccounts.

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Asking the Right Questions: What Do You Say?

Everyone wants a piece of the Green Rush. But what's a lawyer to do with a potential client who's accustomed to working in marijuana's shadows, where agreements and ownership rights perhaps were not always cemented in formal documents?

I reached out recently to three lawyers in the cannabis space who told us how they approach those initial conservations with would-be clients. Those responses are below. I'm also interested in what you're hearing and seeing—so shoot me a note at [email protected].

➤➤ Katy Young, partner, Ad Astra Law Group, San Francisco

I only handle disputes, and filing lawsuits to resolve cannabis business disputes is still a fairly new phenomenon that the judiciary is not yet entirely used to, especially if your dispute would be filed in a conservative judicial district.

So I ask “What is your appetite for filing a lawsuit, and if you want to go that route, how comfortable are you with being a guinea pig for this kind of matter?”

I handle mostly partnership disputes and breach of contract actions. I see the same kind of opponent in nearly every conflict, so I ask “Would you describe the opponent as someone who considers him/herself to be the smartest person in any room?”

And the most common, a real classic in this industry, “Is any of what you are saying written down anywhere?” Otherwise it is just he said/she said.

➤➤ Dean Richardson, partner and trial section vice-chair, Moye White, in Denver

The first question in every representation is “How can we help you?”

Do you have an operating agreement, and what is the management structure of the company (it is manager-managed or member-managed)?

Who are the owners of the company and are there any disputes among owners?

Is there an arbitration agreement?

➤➤ Jason Klein, partner, Offit Kurman, Washington, D.C.