Cannabis Startups 101 (On-Demand)

Course Description

Most entrepreneurs starting a new business do not pay much attention to how to form an entity for the business, what type of entity makes the most sense, factors to be considered in that decision, and how to manage founder equity, corporate governance, capitalization, fundraising and related issues following formation. Business owners in the cannabis industry face the same questions, with the added overlays of the continued federal illegality of cannabis, the disparate tax treatment of some of these companies, the unique banking challenges facing the industry and burdens of state regulation where cannabis has been legalized for medical or recreational purposes. This CLE, led by prominent cannabis corporate counsel David Feldman, will review the unique challenges faced in starting a new cannabis business and provides practical guidance on how to navigate these issues and decision trees.

Syllabus

1. What are the pros and cons of different entity choices?
2. What regulatory considerations in cannabis impact on these decisions?
3. What ownership and compliance questions need to be addressed upon and following formation?
4. How are governance decisions different in the cannabis industry?