Hannah King Bio

Hannah E. King, a partner on the Dentons Cannabis team, is one of the nation’s leading authorities on the highly regulated and complex cannabis industry, holding a national ranking from Chambers USA in Cannabis Law: Eastern United States. For almost a decade, Hannah has advised hundreds of cannabis businesses from small family-run businesses to large publicly traded, multi-state operators in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York and Vermont. She represents a wide array of business types including standalone medical and adult use hydro-carbon, distillate and CO2 extraction facilities; infused edibles and beverage producers; cultivators; retailers; testing labs; and vertically integrated operators. She also represents investors, landlords and ancillary businesses, including financial institutions. Hannah’s work includes local and state licensing and permitting and regulatory compliance, as well as assisting cannabis businesses in navigating cannabis laws in complicated commercial and financial transactions and litigation. That includes full-service representation in the formation of and sale to Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs). Working with Dentons lawyers in other practice areas such as Tax and Employment & Labor, Hannah advises cannabis clients on the navigation, pre-transaction restructuring and formation of an ESOP trust and plan, as well as the sale of the cannabis business to the ESOP. She also advises on all regulatory matters included in the ESOP transaction, including cannabis regulations. These transactions range in value from US$25 million to US$1 billion. Hannah has substantial experience working with tribal nations across the country seeking to enter the cannabis and hemp markets. She advises on the status of state and federal marijuana laws, development of tribal regulatory regimes, negotiations for joint ventures with cannabis operators, and compact drafting and negotiations. She has also advised financial institutions on developing and implementing Marijuana-Related Business programs that comport with the 2014 FinCEN Guidance on “BSA Expectations Regarding Marijuana-Related Businesses.” Since 2016, Hannah has represented cannabis businesses in the Maine State Legislature. As a representative of Maine Professionals for Regulating Marijuana, Hannah helped to draft and pass Maine’s Marijuana Legalization Act and significant amendments to Maine’s Medical Use of Marijuana Act. Because of her legal experience and collaborative problem-solving skills, Hannah was appointed to represent Maine’s adult use cannabis industry to the State of Maine Marijuana Advisory Commission, formed to continuously study and make recommendations to the legislature on best practices for regulating marijuana. Hannah also advises private companies and tribal clients on state and federal hemp laws, helping them comply with the complex federal and diverse state and local laws governing the production and sale of hemp and hemp products, including food products containing hemp extracts. Hannah has been recognized as a Top Rated Cannabis Lawyer by Super Lawyers. She is a frequent contributor to local and national publications and is currently a member of the Law360 Cannabis Editorial Advisory Board, as well as a frequent presenter at conferences nationwide on cannabis law.