Lawyer with cannabis industry ties, ex-New York senator picked for MJ board

Don’t miss our MJBiz LinkedIn Live covering “Women Leaders in Cannabis: Shattering the Grass Ceiling” on Wednesday, March 27, at 2 p.m. ET. Visit LinkedIn to register!


An attorney with reportedly deep expertise in both the U.S. and Canadian cannabis industries and a former state senator were appointed to the board that will oversee New York’s upcoming recreational cannabis market.

Adam Perry of the Hodgson Russ law firm was selected for the New York Cannabis Control Board by the state’s assembly speaker, Carl Heastie, according to the New York Post.

Former state Sen. Jen Metzger, a Democrat, was appointed to the board by Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, the Middletown Times Herald-Record reported.

With those selections, the board awaits only two more members, both of whom will be appointed by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Hochul, who replaced Andrew Cuomo as governor in August, previously appointed Tremaine Wright as chair of the Cannabis Control Board and the Office of Cannabis Management and Chris Alexander as executive director of both agencies.

Perry, a partner at his firm in upstate New York, reportedly specializes in “cannabis and hemp” and “Canada-U.S. cross-border” issues, the Post reported.

Metzger, a Democrat, served one term as a state senator in 2019-20, according to the Herald-Record.