Federal Agencies 101 - Cannabis: Federal Regulation Basics

Matt Zorn Related seminars and products

Attorney

Yetter Coleman LLP

Matt focuses on complex commercial litigation, representing clients in IP, contract, and regulatory litigation in federal and state court. He has significant expertise in federal jurisdiction and procedure. Matt is at home digging out case-changing evidence, crafting legal strategies under arcane statutes and procedures, eliciting critical deposition or trial testimony, and arguing on his feet to courts and arbitrators, all to help his clients win needed relief. Matt was honored as a 2020 Pegasus Scholar by American Inns of Court. In one of his favorite areas of complex litigation, Best Lawyers in America named Matt "One to Watch," and Thomson Reuters' Super Lawyers recognized him as a "Texas Rising Star" in IP Litigation. Based on recent pro bono work, Matt also is recognized as an authority in the byzantine federal regulatory scheme relating to cannabis research, even being named to the Law360 2020 Cannabis Editorial Advisory Board. Before joining the firm, Matt was a judicial clerk to the Hon. Rodney Gilstrap, U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Texas, spending hundreds of hours in court helping manage one of the busiest trial dockets in the country. Before then he was a litigator with Paul, Weiss in New York City.

Shane Pennington Related seminars and products

Partner

Vicente LLP

Shane’s practice is focused on appeals and regulatory litigation for clients in a diverse array of industries, including energy, shipping, aviation, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare. Recent matters have involved challenges to federal agency action under the Administrative Procedure Act, preemption issues under the Airline Deregulation Act, and EPA rule-making challenges under the Clean Air Act. Drawing on his experience as a former law clerk to judges on both the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, Shane’s unique insights can also assist clients that may be evaluating potential or pending cases involving complex regulatory issues.

Shane received his J.D. from The University of Texas School of Law with high honors and served as both the Articles Editor for the Texas Law Review and as Managing Editor of Texas Review of Law and Politics. He completed three clerkships, including with the Honorable Royce C. Lamberth, then-Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, the Honorable Jennifer Walker Elrod of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and the Honorable David B. Sentelle, then-Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Shane is recognized as "One to Watch" by Best Lawyers in America® and as a “Texas Rising Star” in Appellate Law by Thomson Reuters’ Super Lawyers. He is a published author on emerging issues in administrative law and founded admin.law, a blog where he comments on important happenings in administrative law in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. He is also part of Yale Journal on Regulation’s Notice & Comment blog where he provides regular commentary and insight on a wide variety of administrative law issues. 

Prior to joining the firm, Shane was an associate with Baker Botts.

Marisa Malek Related seminars and products

Attorney

King & Spalding LLP

A partner in our FDA and Life Sciences practice, Marisa Maleck focuses on litigation, regulatory matters and public policy, with a focus on consumer products and services. As a former senior counsel at an FDA-regulated company and in private practice, Marisa has substantial experience with and is skilled in providing creative solutions in the face of uncertainty. 

Marisa represents clients in a variety of matters with a focus on FDA-regulated products and life-science services like food, beverages, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, wellness products, cosmetics, telehealth, tobacco and cannabis. As a former senior counsel at an FDA-regulated vaping company and as a former partner in King & Spalding’s Litigation and Global Disputes practice group, she handled hundreds of suits in a multi-district litigation, multiple agency inquiries, an FTC lawsuit and 10+ state Attorney Generals actions. With a special focus on consumer fraud, social-media marketing and personal injury/wrongful death lawsuits, Marisa has successfully drafted and/or argued appellate briefs and critical motions in numerous cases—including class actions and complex litigation—before the U.S. Supreme Court, federal and state courts of appeals, and federal and state trial courts. She has also advocated tirelessly for her clients through engagement with agencies, policy-makers, and legislators. She also represents her clients in investigations, enforcement actions, private litigation and private-equity investments. 

Marisa also advocates for her clients’ interests in the court of public opinion. She is often solicited for her balanced legal analysis by members of the media. Marisa has appeared on (tv/radio) MSNBC, MSN, CNBC and NPR, and in (print) Newsweek, the National Law Journal, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and Politico.

In addition, Marisa has an active pro-bono practice representing indigent defendants through federal appellate appointments as part of the Criminal Justice Act program, through active partnership with public-interest groups, and as a screener for the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project.

Previously, Marisa served as a law clerk for Associate Justice Clarence Thomas of the Supreme Court of the United States and for Chief Judge William H. Pryor, Jr. of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.