Most cannabis law jobs never get posted. There's no listing to apply to and no on-campus interview slot, so the path in looks different than it does in almost any other practice area.
That's why INCBA's Students Committee brought together five practicing cannabis attorneys for A Day in the Life of a Cannabis Attorney, a free webinar built around 38 questions submitted by registrants. The panel took those questions head-on: what the work actually looks like hour by hour, how each of them got here, and what they'd tell a law student who wants to be in their seat. Here's what they cover, and then a closer look at who's on the panel.
What They Get Into
- The real day-to-day. Contracts, regulator correspondence, subpoenas, and land use permits, often in the same week and sometimes the same day.
- Licensing and regulation. Why ownership and control is “like 50% of the job,” and how to work with regulators as a repeat player rather than an adversary.
- Land use and local approvals. Community meetings, 40-page narratives, and city council hearings that run past midnight.
- Disputes and litigation. The employment and partnership disputes that come up most often in cannabis, and what it took to beat federal forfeiture proceedings.
- Stigma. From career offices suggesting a separate “non-cannabis” resume to fellow attorneys asking if you're a “real lawyer,” and how much has changed.
- What to take in law school. Corporate, tax, admin law, secured transactions, and the case for federal Indian law.
- Breaking in. Mentors, cold emails, Google alerts on the people you want to work with, and why conferences pay off in year three or four rather than year one.
Watch the Full Session
Can't see the video? Watch it on YouTube.
Meet the Panel
The panel brings together different firm sizes, markets, and paths into the law. Here's who you'll hear from.
Victoria Mooncotch — Associate, Dentons (Moderator)
Victoria leads INCBA's Students Committee and credits the organization with much of her early career. She landed her role at Dentons by cold emailing the firm's cannabis practice lead. She's living proof of the advice the whole panel kept coming back to: closed mouths don't get fed.
Joanne Caceres — Partner, Dentons
Joanne spent the first five years of her career as a healthcare litigator before moving into cannabis and hemp regulatory work. She has secured licenses, contributed to legislation, and helped social equity applicants through pro bono work. Some clients call her the Illinois regulator whisperer, and she explains why being a trusted resource to regulators matters as much as any argument you'll make to them.
Jana Weltzin — Principal, Owner, JDW Counsel
Jana represents licensees in Alaska and Arizona. She came up through land use work at Rose Law Group in Scottsdale before returning to Alaska as the state legalized. She launched her own firm out of a windowless storage closet, so she'd know firsthand everything her entrepreneur clients were going through, down to running payroll without a bank.
Lara DeCaro — Principal, Bond Legal & Dispute Resolutions PC
Lara is a transactional attorney, mediator, and arbitrator in San Francisco and one of INCBA's co-founders. She has worked with some California cannabis clients for nearly 20 years. She also led the team that defeated federal forfeiture proceedings against an East Bay cannabis retailer, after some of the most aggressive defense attorneys she knew told her to walk away.
Alexis Lazzeri — Associate Attorney, Manzuri Law
Alexis serves as outside general counsel to licensed cannabis businesses, handling regulatory compliance, contracts, and agency proceedings. Six years into practice and a former lead of INCBA's Students Committee, she's the closest to where today's students are. She speaks candidly about the stigma she faced early on and how she built her career through relationships.
Jason Adelstone — Partner, MBA, Harris Sliwoski LLP
Jason went to law school at 34 specifically to practice cannabis law, and added an MBA to advise on business operations as well as contracts. Today he's a recognized authority on international drug treaties and federal policy, and he teaches at UNLV's law school. He got there by finding the work no one else at his firm was doing and becoming the expert in it.
For Law Students
Want to take the next step? Join INCBA via our FREE Law Student Membership to get access to Canbar Forum and the new INCBA job board, where members post jobs and internships. You can also introduce yourself on the Canbar Forum, where, as the panel pointed out, people do respond.
