Jason Adelstone, Partner at Harris Sliwoski LLP – Interview Series

With every passing year, the American cannabis industry continues to become more normalized and established in ways that extend far beyond the opening of another dispensary. Instead, the industry is increasingly attracting accomplished professionals from a wide range of industries and disciplines who have found purpose and opportunity within the cannabis space.

Moreover, well-respected universities now offer extensive catalogs of courses and certificate programs covering various aspects of cannabis business and law. From Syracuse University to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, these programs are preparing future cannabis professionals to navigate the complexities of this robust and unique industry. Among the most important offerings are courses focused on cannabis law, which are currently available at UNLV and several other universities.

For a closer look at cannabis law and the importance of universities teaching subjects relevant to the industry, mycannabis.com spoke with Jason Adelstone, Partner at Harris Sliwoski LLP.

Before becoming a lawyer, you had a unique professional journey. How exactly did you get the role with the United States Antarctic Program, and what were your duties while at McMurdo Station at the South Pole? How did the station’s isolated location add extra challenges to your role?

Before heading to Antarctica, I had spent 16 years working in the restaurant industry. During my last four years, I was managing both front- and back-of-house operations. That meant some days I was arriving at 5 a.m. to open the kitchen, while other days I wasn’t leaving until midnight or even 2 a.m. after closing the front-of-house. After years of that schedule, I was completely burned out.

At the time, I was dating a woman who mentioned that my restaurant experience could qualify me for a job in Antarctica. The idea stuck with me, and when I finally decided to leave the restaurant industry, I applied to work for the United States Antarctic Program as a janitor and glorified dishwasher. I say “glorified” because my actual title was Lead Steward, which was essentially a management position, just with a lot less decision-making authority. The stewards are responsible for working in the galley (cafeteria) and providing janitorial support throughout the station. Cleaning toilets and post and pans was my way into the program. Being a steward is one of the toughest jobs at McMurdo Station, but you’re also living and working in Antarctica, so it was absolutely worth it.

My second year, I returned as a regular steward working at the McMurdo runway galley. Thanks to a government shutdown that year, I also ended up becoming the breakfast chef at the runway. My days started at 4 a.m., which sounds brutal, but during the Antarctic summer, the sun never sets. Having daylight 24 hours a day made those early mornings surprisingly tolerable. I also got to work on the ice shelf, which was so cool.

In my third and final year, I was promoted to Logistics Supervisor for Beverage, Retail, and Finance Operations for the United States Antarctic Program. That’s a pretty fancy title for a job that essentially involved overseeing the movement of alcohol across the continent, including shipments to field camps and the South Pole, as well as managing the McMurdo Station store. I was also in charge of Station Services finance department. That position eventually took me to the South Pole, where a weather delay turned what was supposed to be a one day visit into a full week. Spending an entire week at the South Pole was, without question, one of the most incredible experiences of my life.

As for the isolation, it really wasn’t an issue for me, and I think most people who thrive down there would say the same. There’s an incredible amount to do, and the people who choose to work in Antarctica are, generally speaking, pretty amazing. I was also down there for only 6-7 months at a time. It’s a unique community filled with interesting, adventurous people from all sorts of backgrounds.

I’m not sure how much things have changed now that Starlink is available throughout the station, but when I was there, we had no cell service and extremely limited internet access. During the day, email was about all you could reliably use. And while that might sound miserable to some people, I actually think it made the experience better. People weren’t constantly staring at their phones. We ate together, worked together, socialized together, and genuinely got to know one another. There was a real sense of community that’s increasingly hard to find elsewhere.

The program also puts a lot of effort into providing entertainment and recreational opportunities. For example, despite being an absolutely terrible singer and guitar player, I ended up in a band called Shitty and Loud. We played, I believe, four gigs at the station bars and I played a solo gig at South Pole. We certainly lived up to our name, but it was an absolute blast!

Looking back, Antarctica was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I also met my now wife there, so also life changing. The work could be exhausting, the environment was unlike anywhere else on Earth, and the isolation was real. But the people, the camaraderie, and the opportunity to experience such an extraordinary place made every bit of it worthwhile.

After quite a few years in large-scale food and beverage management, what interested you about going to law school? How did you view law school as an exciting new chapter in your life?

I didn’t decide that law school was the right path for me until about three months after returning from my final year in Antarctica. There wasn’t much room for advancement within the Antarctic program, so I knew it was time to figure out what came next.

After getting off the Ice, I applied for all sorts of jobs. One opportunity I still think about was the Director of Concessions position at Denver International Airport. I actually made it to the second round of interviews. At the time, it was a dream job, although looking back, I’m incredibly glad I didn’t get it! Whoever did has also done a great job, so it all worked out.

I also applied for a management position at a Colorado marijuana dispensary, owned by Ean Seeb (now, the Governor of Colorado’s cannabis and psychedelic guy). I didn’t get that job either, but shortly after receiving the rejection, I found myself at the library researching what I wanted to do with my life. I knew I still loved the restaurant industry, but I had no desire to return to operations. At the same time, Colorado’s emerging marijuana industry was fascinating to me, and I wanted to find a way to be involved.

The more I researched different career paths, the more I realized that becoming an attorney could give me the flexibility to work in virtually any industry that interested me. I was particularly drawn to the fact that both restaurants and cannabis were heavily focused on small businesses and entrepreneurs. I liked the idea of helping people build businesses, navigate challenges, and pursue opportunities in industries I genuinely cared about. I also loved that cannabis touched almost every aspect of law. Coming from restaurants I knew I could never be an attorney that focused on only one thing. I needed diversity and cannabis gave me that.

The more I learned about the law, the more interested I became. I worked my way through Harvard Law School’s suggested reading list, and rather than being intimidated by what I was getting myself into, I became even more excited. I even enjoyed studying for the LSAT! Every step of the process reinforced that this was exactly what I wanted to do.

So, at 34 years old, my now-wife and I packed up and moved to Syracuse, New York, where I pursued a joint JD/MBA. I went into law school with a very specific goal: to build a legal career focused on the cannabis and restaurant industries.

It certainly wasn’t the most traditional path to becoming an attorney, but looking back, I wouldn’t change a thing. My years in restaurants, traveling solo, and Antarctica gave me a perspective and set of experiences that I never could have gained in a classroom, and they continue to shape how I approach my work today.

What fields of law did you most typically study while attending Syracuse University College of Law?

Aside from the courses every law student is required to take, I focused on classes that would prepare me for a career in the cannabis industry. By the end of my first year, I knew that cannabis law was where I was going to end up. At least at the beginning. Ean Seeb had introduced me to Jordan Wellington, who at the time was responsible for hiring law clerks at Vicente Sederberg LLP (now Vicente LLP). Once I landed a clerkship there, I knew my focus, for at least the near term, was going to be cannabis and psychedelics. 

With that in mind, I was very intentional about the courses I selected. Because I was also pursuing my MBA, I looked for classes that would complement my business education and help me become a well-rounded business attorney. I took as many courses focused on business law, transactions, and related subjects as I could. Along the way, I also discovered that I really enjoyed estate planning, so I took every wills and trusts course I could fit into my schedule.

Before starting law school, someone told me that law school doesn’t teach you how to be an attorney; it teaches you how to think like one. There’s certainly a lot of truth to that, but I also believe law school can teach you how to become a better attorney if you approach it with the right mindset.

Starting law school at 34 gave me a different perspective than many of my classmates. I wasn’t there simply to pass my classes, earn a degree, and move on. I genuinely wanted to learn as much as possible and understand how I could apply that knowledge in practice. I treated law school like a full-time job and approached each course as an opportunity to develop skills I would eventually use in my career.

That approach has stayed with me. Even today, I occasionally find myself going back to cases I studied in law school as a starting point for legal research. Of course, AI-powered research tools have made that a little less necessary, but I still appreciate having that foundation.

Looking back, I think the combination of my prior professional experience, my MBA studies, and my deliberate approach to law school helped shape the kind of attorney I am today. I didn’t just want to understand the law in the abstract. I wanted to understand how to use it to help businesses and the people behind them succeed.

How did being involved with organizations such as Moot Court and serving as an editorial member of the Syracuse Law Review strengthen your studies and eventual abilities as an attorney?

I wasn’t actually involved in moot court, but I did participate in a moot negotiation program at Syracuse Law, which was a fantastic experience. Negotiation is such an essential skill for any business attorney, and having the opportunity to practice it in a structured setting was incredibly valuable. It helped me develop skills that I continue to rely on in my practice today.

Law review was equally valuable, but in a different way. It taught me how to critically evaluate legal writing, pay close attention to detail, and ensure that legal arguments were supported by accurate citations. Those skills have been particularly useful in my practice, where precision in both legal analysis and drafting is essential.

How did you first enter the field of cannabis law? What opportunities in cannabis law did you envision in that you didn’t think would be as common in other fields of law?

As I mentioned earlier, my cannabis law career began as a law clerk at Vicente Sederberg. I honestly couldn’t have asked for a better place to start my career or to spend the next six and a half years. The firm gave me opportunities that I don’t think I would have had nearly as early in my career if I had pursued a more traditional area of law.

One of the things that initially attracted me to cannabis law was the opportunity to practice constitutional and international law, two areas that have always fascinated me. I remember my constitutional law professor telling our class that nobody really practices constitutional law unless they’re a professor. But cannabis law is different. Because of the unique legal and regulatory issues surrounding cannabis, the practice touches nearly every aspect of constitutional law. The opportunity to work on those issues as a young attorney was incredibly exciting.

I also knew from the beginning that I wanted to develop an international cannabis practice. When I joined Vicente Sederberg, I noticed that while some of the partners had been involved in international cannabis matters, the firm didn’t have a formal international practice. I saw that as an opportunity.

Starting on my very first day as a law clerk, I began tracking cannabis laws, regulations, and policy developments around the world. I wanted to understand not only how different countries were approaching cannabis legalization and regulation, but also how those developments might create opportunities for the firm and its clients. That project eventually became a major part of my practice, and it’s something I continue to do today. I receive roughly 100 Google Alerts a day, sift through them for relevant cannabis policy developments, and maintain an Excel spreadsheet tracking cannabis laws and regulatory developments in every country in the world. It’s a bit obsessive, but I genuinely enjoy it! It also led me to becoming a leading expert of the International Drug Treaties as it relates to cannabis policy. Again, not something young attorneys generally have the opportunity to learn.

What made cannabis law particularly exciting was that opportunities like these were available to someone so early in their legal career. In more established practice areas, it might take years, if not decades, to get meaningful exposure to complex constitutional questions or international legal issues. In cannabis, the industry was developing so rapidly that there was room for young attorneys to step into those roles, develop expertise, and make meaningful contributions. I was also lucky to have great mentors at Vicente Sederberg who fostered my interests and skills.

I also think starting my legal career later in life worked to my advantage. I had years of professional experience behind me, a level of confidence that came with that experience, and, thanks to the white hair that started showing up during law school, I probably looked a little more seasoned than I actually was. That combination helped me find my way into professional circles and legal matters that might otherwise have been reserved for attorneys with considerably more experience. Looking back, those early opportunities were instrumental in shaping my career. They allowed me to build a practice around the areas of law that interested me most, while being part of an industry that was constantly evolving and presenting new legal challenges.

While working with Vicente LLP, what were some of the most common legal situations and scenarios that you provided counsel to cannabis clients for? Since you were there a while and because the cannabis industry moves so fast, how did your duties and/or the cases you provided counsel for change over those years?

For my first two years at Vicente Sederberg, my practice focused primarily on corporate law, with international cannabis policy work as something of a side hustle. Before 2020, companies were investing in international cannabis policy analysis, often through their government affairs departments. I advised a few clients on cannabis laws and regulatory developments around the world, as well as how U.S. policy could evolve to better position American businesses to participate in emerging international markets. Unfortunately, many of those paid opportunities dried up in 2020, although interest has started to return with the renewed push to reschedule marijuana for medical purposes.

On the corporate side, I was getting experience in just about every aspect of business law. I drafted operating agreements, bylaws, financing documents, and other corporate agreements, worked on mergers and acquisitions, and conducted due diligence. It was an incredible opportunity to develop a broad foundation in corporate law while working with businesses navigating one of the most heavily regulated industries in the country.

Around my second or third year at Vicente Sederberg, I also began working with Martin Jelsma and John Walsh on international drug control treaty issues. This was one of the most extraordinary educational opportunities of my career. Martin and John are both incredible people, personally and professionally, and they were remarkably generous with their time and knowledge. About twice a month, I had what essentially amounted to private tutoring sessions with two people who had an incredible depth of knowledge about the international drug control treaties and their history. We would dive into the treaties, their interpretation, and the complicated relationship between international drug control obligations and national cannabis reform efforts.

It was an unparalleled learning experience. You simply cannot get that kind of education in a classroom or from reading legal texts alone. So much of what I understand about international cannabis law today comes directly from those conversations. I still draw on what Martin and John taught me, and I’m incredibly grateful that they took the time to share their expertise with a young attorney who was eager to learn.

In 2021, my father passed away from COVID-19. It was an incredibly difficult time, and I found myself struggling to keep up with the demanding deadlines that come with a busy corporate practice. Fortunately, around that same time, Vicente was developing an impact litigation practice group. The firm had hired Shane Pennington as its senior attorney, with Christian Sederberg serving as the partner overseeing the group.

My background in international treaties and cannabis policy complemented Shane’s extensive knowledge of federal regulatory law, which created an opportunity for me to join the group as its junior attorney. The impact litigation group ultimately lasted about a year, but it turned out to be one of the most rewarding and formative years of my legal career. I had the opportunity to work closely with Shane and Christian, learn from their different approaches to complex legal issues, and develop a much deeper understanding of federal cannabis law and regulatory litigation.

I learned an extraordinary amount from both of them, not just about the law itself, but about legal strategy, creative problem-solving, and how to approach complicated legal questions from different angles. Much of what I learned during that year continues to influence how I practice today.

After Christian and Shane left the firm, I transitioned into working with Shawn Hauser in Vicente’s hemp practice group, Joshua Kappel in the firm’s psychedelic practice group, and I continued to develop my niche in federal and international cannabis policy. That transition gave me the opportunity to expand my practice into another rapidly evolving area of cannabis law. Hemp presented an entirely different set of legal and regulatory challenges, particularly as the industry grappled with the complexities of the 2018 Farm Bill, cannabinoid regulation, and the often-conflicting approaches taken by federal and state regulators. Psychedelics presented me with an opportunity to work with an adjacent substance that had many new legal facets to explore (i.e. churches and more medical focus).

Working with Shawn and Josh was another tremendous learning opportunity. It allowed me to build on my corporate and federal regulatory experience while gaining a much deeper understanding of the legal issues facing the hemp and psychedelic industries. At the same time, I continued tracking international cannabis developments and working on federal policy matters, ensuring that those areas remained central to my practice. I even drafted several documents that educated DEA on 21 USC 811(d)(1), which was the foundation used in the Attorney General’s final order moving state legal medical marijuana into schedule III. I don’t believe the AG used it properly, but that’s a different story for another day.

Looking back, one of the things I appreciate most about my time at Vicente is the number of exceptional attorneys and policy experts I had the opportunity to learn from. Between Martin and Josh’s mentorship on international treaties, Shane and Christian’s guidance on federal regulatory law and litigation, and my work with Shawn and Josh in the hemp and psychedelic spaces, I received an education that went far beyond anything I could have imagined when I started law school.

Each of those experiences helped shape my approach to practicing law. They taught me to think critically, question conventional interpretations, understand the broader policy implications of legal decisions, and approach complicated regulatory problems creatively. More than anything, they reinforced how fortunate I was to build a career in an industry where the law is constantly evolving and where there is always something new to learn.

What law school and university courses and subject matter in cannabis law do you teach as an Adjunct Professor at both UNLV’s Boyd School of Law and Metropolitan State University? From your experience, how do those courses help prepare and educate future cannabis lawyers?

I currently teach International Cannabis Law at the William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV and Cannabis in the Global Economy to undergraduate students at Metropolitan State University of Denver. Teaching these two courses has been an incredibly rewarding experience, both personally and professionally.

Both courses require me to stay current on cannabis laws, regulations, and policy developments around the world. They also force me to revisit treaties, legal decisions, and policy documents that I’ve been reading for years, making sure I fully understand the material I’m teaching and can explain it effectively. There’s something valuable about returning to a document you’ve read dozens of times and discovering a nuance or perspective you hadn’t previously considered.

What I particularly enjoy is how differently the two courses challenge me. Teaching law students keeps me sharp on the technical aspects of international law, treaty interpretation, and legal analysis. Teaching undergraduates, on the other hand, challenges me to take those same complicated legal and policy concepts and explain them in a way that’s accessible to students who may have little or no legal background. Being able to teach the same general subject matter to two very different audiences is helping me become a better communicator. It’s helped me learn how to frame complex legal issues for just about anyone, whether I’m speaking with attorneys, policymakers, business executives, or people who are simply curious about cannabis policy.

I’ve always believed that one of the best ways to truly master a subject is to teach it. It’s one thing to understand a complicated legal concept yourself. It’s another to explain it clearly, answer unexpected questions, and help someone else understand why it matters. My students regularly ask thoughtful questions that challenge me to reconsider assumptions or approach issues from a different perspective. It’s also fascinating to see how the next generation thinks about cannabis regulation, international law, and the role of government.

Teaching international cannabis law has also reinforced just how closely drug policy is connected to broader geopolitical developments. For example, my first year teaching the international cannabis law course began just weeks after the United States’ military intervention in Venezuela and the capture of President Nicolás Maduro, and a day after President Trump announced the withdrawal of the United States from numerous international organizations and treaty-related commitments, including those involving environmental cooperation.

Much of my course focuses on the international drug control treaties, how countries interpret and implement their treaty obligations, and the legal and political tensions that arise when domestic cannabis reforms conflict with international commitments. Those geopolitical developments forced me to rethink how I framed the course. Rather than discussing international treaty obligations solely through the traditional lens of international law, I had to address the reality that countries’ willingness to comply with international commitments is heavily influenced by domestic politics, geopolitical interests, and changing attitudes toward international institutions.

That made the course even more interesting. It created an opportunity to explore not just what international law requires, but how international law actually operates in a world where governments sometimes choose to challenge, reinterpret, or disregard their obligations.

Ultimately, teaching has become quite rewarding but something I need to keep getting better at. It keeps me intellectually engaged, challenges me to continuously improve my understanding of the law, and gives me the opportunity to learn from students who bring fresh perspectives to issues I’ve spent years studying. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned from teaching, it’s that no matter how much you think you know about a subject, there’s always more to learn.

In your role at Harris Sliwoski LLP, how do your clients’ legal needs differ by state market? Do some state markets still have certain legal issues and problematic regulations to still work through?

One of the things I love most about practicing cannabis law is that no two clients have the same needs. The advice I provide depends heavily on what a client is trying to accomplish, where they want to operate, and the unique legal, regulatory, and political challenges of that jurisdiction. A strategy that makes perfect sense for one client in one market might be completely impractical for another. That constant variation keeps the work interesting because I genuinely never know what kind of question, challenge, or opportunity a client might bring me tomorrow.

State cannabis markets and their unique regulatory burdens continue to create significant challenges for operators. With marijuana, it’s often not just the state regulations that businesses have to navigate, but also the rules imposed by cities and counties. In many jurisdictions, local governments have considerable authority over whether and how cannabis businesses can operate. This creates enormous headaches for clients, who find themselves navigating multiple layers of bureaucracy, regulatory red tape, and sometimes conflicting requirements. And because every jurisdiction approaches cannabis differently, helping clients navigate these challenges requires much more than simply knowing the applicable laws. You have to understand the client’s business model, its goals, and how the regulatory environment affects its ability to succeed.

These days, much of my practice focuses on strategic advising, particularly in light of the federal marijuana rescheduling process and its potential implications for the industry. I’ve always had a strong interest in policy and politics, and I think one of my strengths as an attorney is understanding how those forces intersect with the law and affect business decisions. I’m even launching a podcast focused on that intersection! It’s called Project Four 2029: Policy & Politics. Clients appreciate having someone who can look beyond the black-letter law, identify potential legal, regulatory, and political pitfalls, and give them a straightforward assessment of the opportunities and risks ahead. Sometimes that means telling clients things they don’t necessarily want to hear, but I believe that’s an important part of being an effective advisor.

More recently, that strategic advisory work has expanded internationally as well. There are plenty of people working in international cannabis consulting, but I believe relatively few approach these markets with the same emphasis on the intersection of law, public policy, and politics. Understanding what a country’s laws say is only part of the equation. You also need to understand how those laws are implemented, the political forces driving regulatory decisions, and whether the business opportunities being promoted are actually viable. A company exploring medical cannabis opportunities in Europe faces an entirely different set of challenges than one looking to enter a market in Latin America or Asia. And even within the same country, two clients may need completely different strategies depending on whether they’re interested in cultivation, manufacturing, research, distribution, or investment.

That diversity of clients, jurisdictions, and objectives is one of the most rewarding aspects of my practice. One day I might be advising a client on the implications of federal rescheduling, the next I’m helping a company evaluate an emerging international market, and the day after that I’m working through a complicated acquisition. Each situation presents a different puzzle to solve, and I enjoy having to constantly learn, adapt, and think creatively to find practical solutions.

While I still enjoy corporate law and the transactional side of my practice, strategic advising is what really excites me. I love helping clients think through complicated problems, anticipate regulatory developments, and make informed decisions about the future of their businesses. It also gives me the opportunity to draw on both my legal training and my MBA, which is exactly the combination I hoped to use when I decided to pursue a JD/MBA in the first place.

Ultimately, what I enjoy most is being more than just the attorney who tells a client what the law says. I want to understand what they’re trying to accomplish, help them anticipate the challenges they may encounter, and develop a strategy that makes sense for their particular business and the markets they’re pursuing. And because the cannabis industry is constantly evolving, I never know exactly what tomorrow will bring. That’s a big part of what makes this work so exciting.

On the international scale, which other countries do you think could be the most promising for thriving cannabis markets of their own? Why those countries in particular?

Brazil

Following this past Sunday’s election results in Brazil, I expect the country’s medical cannabis market to continue expanding. Domestic cultivation is likely to increase, while imports continue to grow. Given its population and evolving regulatory framework, Brazil has the potential to become one of the largest medical cannabis markets in the world. This is the country I’ll be watching the closest.

France

France could become a particularly interesting market if its proposed medical cannabis framework receives final government approval and is implemented before the April elections. The proposed program falls somewhere between a strictly pharmaceutical model and a traditional medical cannabis market. Although flower will not initially be permitted, non-pharmaceutical preparations, including oils and tinctures will be available.

While medical cannabis markets that exclude flower rarely reach their full potential, France could provide valuable insights into an alternative regulatory approach. One particularly interesting feature is the program’s tiered government reimbursement structure for medical cannabis.

The critical issue is timing. If the program is implemented and fully operational before the next government takes office, it may have a better chance of becoming established. However, if a far-right government assumes power, there is a risk that the framework could stall or be further restricted and pushed toward a more traditional pharmaceutical model.

Thailand

If Thailand can successfully advance its medical cannabis regulations through Parliament, it has the potential to become a major player in the international medical cannabis market.

Thailand’s geographic location and comparatively low production costs could position it to compete directly with Canadian cannabis exports to Australia and other markets in the region. Even accounting for the additional costs associated with dehumidification and climate control, Thailand’s advantages in cultivation, manufacturing, labor costs, and transportation could make it a formidable competitor.

Switzerland

Switzerland’s adult-use cannabis pilot programs continue to produce encouraging results, and discussions surrounding broader legalization appear to be gaining momentum. While I’m not quite ready to hold my breath, the outlook is increasingly promising.

Notably, the pilot programs appear to be attracting support even within a more conservative political environment. Given Switzerland’s emphasis on scientific evidence and a structured regulatory approach, it will be particularly interesting to see whether the results of these programs can translate into a comprehensive adult-use legalization framework.

Africa

Across Africa, several countries appear to be advancing cannabis regulatory frameworks focused primarily on cultivation and export rather than developing domestic consumer markets.

It will be interesting to see how many additional countries adopt this approach and whether the growing number of export-oriented producers creates increased competition in international markets. As more countries enter the space, the ability to secure reliable export destinations, meet international quality standards, and compete on production costs will likely become increasingly important. The growing regulatory guidance that Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) requirements apply immediately following harvest could further constrain the region’s cultivation and export opportunities, potentially increasing compliance costs and diminishing its competitive advantage in international markets. This could also weaken Thailand’s prospects on the global stage.

Thank you for joining us, Jason! For more information on Harris Sliwoski, please visit its website.