‘ethics’
South Dakota Bar Warns Lawyers that Counseling Marijuana Clients Might be Ethics Violation – Not First State to Say So
Jan. 6, 2021—In fall 2020, South Dakota voters approved measures to legalize both medical and recreational marijuana. See Marijuana Reforms Win Big at the Polls. In January 2021, however, the South Dakota State Bar Association warned attorneys that providing legal services to marijuana businesses would violate the South Dakota Rules of Professional Conduct (i.e., the bar’s code of...
California Issues (Draft) Formal Ethics Opinion for Attorneys Advising Marijuana Clients
Nov. 14, 2019—It escaped my attention earlier, but it looks like the California Bar Association in June issued guidance for California-licensed attorneys informing them of what legal services they may (and may not) ethically provide to marijuana clients. The 16 page opinion from the State Bar Standing Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct (COPRAC) can be found...
UPDATE: The Criminal Case Against a San Diego Marijuana Attorney has Settled
Jul. 28, 2018—Back in September 2017, I blogged about the criminal case against a San Diego marijuana law attorney, Jessica McElfresh, and her client, Med West. The case began in January 2016, when San Diego officials raided Med West, a medical marijuana dispensary. The county suspected Med West had been illegally manufacturing concentrated cannabis oil. But the...