As the U.S. Department of Justice looks to clamp down on the budding marijuana industry, the Florida-based Greenspoon Marder law firm is doubling down on its bet on cannabis with the purchase of a Washington lobbying firm.

The acquisition of The Liaison Group, a federal lobbying firm that works with the marijuana sector to push pro-pot legislation, gives the firm a new vantage point.

“Advocacy and federal issues are of paramount importance in the cannabis industry,” said Gerry Greenspoon, co-founder of the growing Fort Lauderdale-based Am Law 200 firm.

Since Greenspoon Marder launched its cannabis practice several years ago, it has been actively involved in both advocacy and regulatory work for clients who operate in the fledgling, highly policed legal marijuana industry, Greenspoon said.

But much of that work had been confined to the state level, so it made sense to enlarge the firm's focus with a federal lobbying operation, Greenspoon said.

“It was time to turn our focus on the federal issues because, without solving that problem, the entire industry and the help that could be provided to so many people gets stopped in its tracks,” he said.

Greenspoon said the firm, which has been enjoying an extended period of expansion and revenue growth, was introduced to The Liaison Group about a year ago and began discussions about a potential tie-up.

“We learned more and more about what they were doing and we said, 'Wow, this is a perfect fit in the next step in where we have to go,' ” Greenspoon said.

Founded in 2016 by Saphira Galoob, a former associate at Davis Wright Tremaine predecessor firm Cole, Raywid & Braverman, The Liaison Group lobbies the U.S. House and U.S. Senate to shape the federal legislative and policy landscape on behalf of the marijuana industry and to protect and preserve state-authorized marijuana programs.

“They've been actively involved on the federal level on issues working to develop a change in federal policy, member by member, senator by senator, and we expect to continue that,” Greenspoon said. The Liaison Group will become a subsidiary of the firm, operating out of its Washington office.

So far, 29 states, the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico have legalized medical marijuana, and nine states have passed measures allowing the use of recreational marijuana. Federal law still prohibits the use and sale of the drug.

SCHEDULE 1

First on the agenda for Greenspoon Marder and The Liaison Group is to tackle marijuana's classification as a Schedule 1 controlled substance, which keeps banks at a distance and creates tax obstacles.

“You have businesses that are legitimately operating within their state,” he said. “They want to pay their taxes and do [but] are penalized under the Internal Revenue Code.”

As the fate of cannabis policy in the Trump administration continues to be debated, Greenspoon said the firm has no plans to stop investing. The firm has been one of the most active law firms in the space, opening several new offices across the country to accommodate a growing cannabis-related clientele.

Over the past two years, Greenspoon Marder has opened offices in Denver, Las Vegas, Nevada City, Phoenix, Portland and San Diego to capitalize on work from the growing industry, which netted nearly $9 billion in sales last year.

Earlier this year, it set up shop in Los Angeles with a group of attorneys from entertainment boutique Eisner Jaffe. While the initial focus of the office is litigation, Greenspoon said the firm is actively looking to build a cannabis practice in the city, bolster the practice in its other locations and move into other jurisdictions.

“We're constantly looking at additional states to expand into,” Greenspoon said.