Joel A. Holt

Joel is an accomplished attorney with 18 years’ experience across a wide range of legal disciplines. Joel focuses his practice in the areas of business law, corporate counseling and governance, transactions, real estate, and legal cannabis/hemp law. Joel’s multidisciplinary practice affords him the opportunity to act as outside general counsel to small businesses across Northeast Ohio, supporting them through all phases of the business life cycle, including formation, employment and HR matters, governance issues, contractual matters, asset and stock purchases, debt and equity financing, commercial real estate leasing and acquisition, copyright and trademark, and dissolution.

Joel has also represented legal cannabis and hemp businesses in Ohio since 2016 in all phases of licensure and operations for all legally recognized licenses: cultivation, processing, and dispensaries. Joel’s work with legal cannabis businesses in Ohio, California, Arizona, and Canada afforded him being named one of the Top 200 Cannabis Lawyers by Cannabis Law Report.

Joel’s practice also encompasses representing businesses and individuals in Northeast Ohio and nationwide in civil and commercial litigation and appellate advocacy. Joel is a seasoned litigator and brings his knowledge of litigation to help business and individual clients avoid mistakes and minimize the risk of liability prior to litigation. If a lawsuit happens, Joel is qualified to handle all aspects of the litigation to protect clients’ interests and provide sound advice tailored to minimize the damage caused by the lawsuit.

Joel graduated from the University of Akron School of Law, magna cum laude, in 2005. While in law school, Joel was published in the Akron Law Review (https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/akronlawreview/vol38/iss2/5/). Upon graduation, Joel served as a staff attorney for the Ohio Ninth District Court of Appeals, as well as and an adjunct professor at the University of Akron School of Law and Hiram College. Joel a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, where he served with honor and distinction while earning his undergraduate degree, with honors, while on active duty.

Representative Engagements

• Represents local mental health care providers, with specific experience in HIPAA related issues, confidentiality and privacy, litigation and employment matters.
• Represents a local Amazon delivery business.
• Represents several clients in industrial spaces, including HVAC, manufacturing, machining, plasma cutting, remodeling / construction, and refinishing.
• Represents homeowners’ and condominium associations.
• Represents two provisionally licensed medical marijuana dispensaries in Ohio.
• Represents a California based real estate company that locates and secures compliant retail cannabis locations in legal jurisdictions; currently working with nine provisionally licensed medical marijuana dispensaries in Ohio.
• Represented a publicly traded Canadian cannabis company in M&A efforts in Ohio.
• Represented an Arizona based multi-state operator in its licensure efforts in Ohio, including applications, regulatory compliance, and administrative proceedings.
• Provided recommendations and consulting to the Country of Greece when implementing its medical marijuana program.
• Represented a local small business in a copyright and trademark infringement litigation against Amazon.