Washington Lawyers Can Operate Marijuana Businesses

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Lawyers in the state of Washington—one of five U.S. jurisdictions that have legalized recreational cannabis use—are generally free to operate marijuana-related businesses and to engage in personal use of the drug, the Washington state bar's ethics committee advised recently.

The opinion tackles questions the Washington Supreme Court left open last year when it adopted a new comment in the state's lawyer conduct rules authorizing members of the bar to provide legal advice to marijuana industry clients, but declined to approve another change that would have insulated lawyers from discipline for consuming the drug and investing in cannabis-related businesses.

‘Unfinished Business.'

In 2012, voters passed a ballot initiative that legalized the possession, sale and use of recreational marijuana in Washington.

Soon after, bar officials asked the state supreme court to make clear that although federal law still classifies cannabis as an illegal substance, lawyers who advise clients on marijuana-related...

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URL: 
http://www.bna.com/washington-lawyer-operate-n17179934052/