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strong, new whiff of opportunity is blowing in the direction of Cana-
dian business.
As Canada's federal government gets the ball rolling on legalizing
marijuana for recreational use, there's a lot of fertile ground for legal
work across practice areas. On the eve of pot's big leap into the
mainstream market, lawyers tell Canadian Lawyer they're field-
ing calls from clients in various sectors, all inquiring about legal
ways to do work in a once underworld industry.
"It really is a new frontier," says Debbie Weinstein of LaBarge
Weinstein LLP, who acted for Tweed Marijuana Inc. during its
merger with Bedrocan Cannabis Corp last year. That merger
was the first one in Canada's budding medical marijuana
industry, and it solidified a sizable market share for two of
the biggest players in the game. Now that legalization is
coming, Weinstein expects consolidations in the canna-
bis industry to surge up in the years to come, offering
plenty of work for corporate commercial lawyers like
her.
Adam Szweras, a securities law partner at Fog-
ler Rubinoff LLP, says Canada is on the verge of
the "birthing of a new industry" teeming with
opportunities for investors and legal professionals alike. "Whether you're
making packaging for a product or [you're] a courier company delivering
boxes of products, or a trucking company, there's going to be implications
up and down the industry," Szweras says. "You're really creating a whole new
Marijuana
inc
The
impending
legalization
of
recreational
marijuana
is
creating
an
entrepreneurial
buzz
across
Canada's
business
and
law
firm
establishment.
A
t strong, new
dian busin
As Can
marijuan
work a
mains
ing c
way
W
m
ortunitie f
MATTHEW
BILLINGTON
By Yamri Taddese
