Big Law Eyeing Marijuana Space

When Brian Vicente, a lawyer in Denver, donated $45,000 to the Sturm College of Law at the University of Denver last week to endow a professorship to study marijuana law and policy, the gift seemed almost inevitable.

Vicente, who specializes in marijuana law, said this was an “opportunity to give back to the university that has supported me.” But the gift also showed just how far lawyers have come in working in the burgeoning cannabis business.

Small firms, like Vicente’s, have been advising clients on issues for several years. Now even some bigger corporate firms are tiptoeing into the business. ...