Do Lawyers Advising Pot Companies Violate Ethics Rules?

Now that more than 30 states and U.S. territories permit the use of marijuana for medical or recreational purposes, the fledgling industry is looking for legal help. But the question remains whether a lawyer advising a client on the cultivation, sale or use of pot, under state law, runs contrary to professional conduct rules because marijuana is illegal under federal law. Ohio’s Board of Professional Conduct ruled on the question last year, saying that its guidelines do not “distinguish between illegal client conduct that will, or will not, be enforced by the federal government. … Unless and until federal law is amended to authorize the use, production and distribution of medical marijuana, a lawyer only may advise a client as to the legality of conduct either permitted under state law or prohibited under federal law and explain the scope and application of state and federal law to the client’s proposed conduct.” Despite Ohio’s interpretation, “there does not appear to be an active movement to start punishing lawyers working in the marijuana field,” the ABA Journal notes.